Each of us has memories of favourite or not-so-favourite meals prepared during childhood, by grandmas, moms or aunties.
One that came up for discussion recently in our home was porcupines. Housemate remembers his Grandmother making them. My Mom made them frequently but I can’t recall ever making them for us.
I have vague memories of how they were constructed in my childhood kitchen: hamburger rolled in rice and covered with tomato soup and water, baked in the oven and then served with a vegetable. Sometimes bits of rice were crunchy but then the quills on porcupines were unlikely to be tender to the touch.
A quick search through Mom’s cookbooks did not produce a recipe (many of her recipes were never written down, unfortunately.) Even my cookbook for 325 Ways to Cook Hamburger did not help.
So, off to Google I went and learned that Porcupine Meatballs were popular during the Great Depression. They are called porcupines because the rice pokes out of the meat while cooking, resembling the quills on the spiky animal.
This week’s recipes feature porcupines, and an easy way to use leftover ham and vegetables.
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Hamburger Porcupines
1/2 cup long grain rice
1/4 cup water
1/3 cup chopped onion
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. celery salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
1 lb. ground beef
2 tbsps. canola oil
1-15 oz. can tomato soup or sauce
1 cup water
2 tbsps. brown sugar
2 tsps. Worcestershire sauce
Combine first seven ingredients, then add ground beef and mix well.
Shape into 1 1/2 inch balls. Heat oil in skillet and add meatballs to brown on both sides. Drain.
Combine tomato soup or sauce with brown sugar, worcestershire sauce and water then pour mixture over meat balls in skillet. Cover and simmer for 1 hour.
Alternately, place formed meatballs in a casserole dish and cover with sauce ingredients. Bake in 350 degrees F oven for about 1 hour until meat is cooked through but not falling apart. This method omits the use of canola oil.
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Ham, Vegetable Casserole
2 cups cooked macaroni
2 cups cooked vegetables (peppers, mushrooms, corn, celery, onion, etc.)
1 1/2 cups cooked ham, chopped into small chunks
1 cup shredded parmesan or mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 can cream of cheese soup
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tsp. chilli seasoning
Drain macaroni and place in a greased 3 inch casserole dish.
Add vegetables, ham, first amount of cheese, seasonings and soup. Mix thoroughly. Cover with shredded cheddar cheese.
Cover casserole lightly with foil. Heat oven to 375 degrees F then bake for 40-45 minutes until contents are hot and bubbling and cheese is melted on top.
Remove from oven and let stand 5 minutes before serving. Store leftovers in refrigerator.
Note: if using onions, pepper and celery, pre-cook for 5 minutes in the microwave before adding to casserole mixture. Also any other cream soup could be substituted.
Joyce Walter can be reached at [email protected].
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the position of this publication.
