Day 59: Spaghetti a la Philly

Whew! This weekend has been one of those where life gets in the way! Every weekend seems to be that way lately. Good thing I have learned to plan ahead! The hubby and I finally got to go out for Valentine's Day, albeit a few weeks late. We went to my favorite Japanese steakhouse in Provo called Tepanyaki. It is one of those places where you get dinner and a show. I love watching them prepare the food right in front me and unfortunately, I missed the shrimp that they tried to flip into my mouth. However, the fillet Mignon melted in my mouth and made everything okay! On those rare nights that we get out without the kids, spaghetti is my go to meal for the little munchkins. It is quick and easy to prepare, and they love it. I found this variation of the traditional spaghetti at Real Mom Kitchen. We even had some of yesterday's rolls leftover so that was good. I have never thought of adding cream cheese to spaghetti before. Quite frankly, I thought it would be just weird. But it worked! So here goes...

Spaghetti a la Philly

10" dutch oven

1 lb. ground beef

1 small onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce

2-4 ounces cream cheese

12 oz. uncooked spaghetti

Parmesan cheese

In your DO, over about 15-18 coals, brown the beef, onion and garlic. Drain any grease and add the spaghetti sauce and cream cheese. Cook until heated through and well combined. Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to package directions. I used a 10" DO on my propane camp stove. You can easily use coals for this, start with 15 or so and add more, if necessary to keep the water boiling. Drain the spaghetti and add it to the sauce. Top with Parmesan cheese. Serves about 6.

The Finished Product

The Review
The cream cheese in this gave it a whole different flavor. It was nice and rich, and gave the sauce a lighter color. I used 2 oz. of cream cheese because I wasn't sure how it would taste and I didn't have time to start over if the kids hated it. But they loved it! I don't think I would use more than 3 oz. though. But that's just me! I still think that for the DO I like the baked versions of spaghetti better. I think there is more DO flavor in them. But this was good, and it will grace our table again. Grade: B+.