Pioneer 4 in 1
So easy, with a nod to our ancestors, 4 in 1 is a basic casserole with pasta, ground beef, tomatoes and cheese. (The seasonings don’t count, but should - Grandma must have just taken them for granted!)
I am proud to say that my genes sprouted from hardy pioneer stock that crossed the American plains and over the rugged Rocky Mountains to their barren safe haven, in the Valley of the Great Salt Lake in 1847. However, I didn’t inherit any particularly appetizing recipes from them. - pioneer gravy, Johnny cakes I have only made for my grandsons with celicas, and
Gratefo to have been born after the dessert was palnnted and began to bloom like arose, including the culinary creations and inspirations had bloomed from ? But this is one recipe we can trace back atleast to my grandmother, born in the Southern Utah settlements in 1888, forty years into the new Zion settlement.
Pasta, though brought back to American by Thomas Jefferson after having sampled it in Italy during his European years, didn’t make it out to the wilds of the Utah territory until it was actually a state. A few Italian immigrants probably made it out earlier but it was the late 1800’s and particulary through the early 1900s, that pasta established a foot hold in the American diet.
ngredients
Pioneer gravy was made using a roux base and a liquid. Given the scarcity of resources and the context of life in the 1800s, the ingredients would be:
Fat: Pork or bacon grease was the most common base, as it was a byproduct of cooking cured meats, a staple of the pioneer diet. Rendered lard was another available option.
Thickening agent: A mix of cornmeal and flour was used, with cornmeal being a hardy, cheap ingredient that was easier to acquire than wheat flour in some areas. Some variations used just flour.
Liquid: Water or milk was added to the roux. Since fresh milk was often limited or rationed, water or a mixture of the two would have been used.
Seasoning: The final gravy would have been seasoned simply with salt and pepper.
A vintage recipe from the early 1800s illustrates the simple process:
Heat bacon grease in a pan.
Add cornmeal and flour to the hot fat to create a roux.
Slowly whisk in milk and cook until the mixture thickens.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
This simple combination of the “4” in th etitle - pasta, ground beef (had been around for year as well as tomatoes and cheese) - Put hem all together in a pot and bake them in the wood burning stoves of the early 20th century. With the hindrance of uneven cooking, once that cheese melted into the pasta and the onion flavor bounced about to season the whole, it was done.
Grandma’s 4 in 1:
1 pound lean ground beef (85%) 1 large onion, finely diced 12 ounces, dry pasta (elbow, small penne or spiral pasta) 1 - regular sized can diced tomatoes (14.5 ounces) 1/3 cup tomato paste 1/3 cup water 2 cups cheddar cheese (1 1/2 cups cut into small cubes and 1/2 cup grated for top) salt and pepper to taste
-In a large saute pan, heat 2 tablespoons oil. Add the onion and saute until soft, about 5 minutes, over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and cook and break apart until the meat is browned. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Drain off any excess oil then return to the saute pan. Set aside.
-In a medium-large saucepan, over high heat, heat 5 cups of water to boiling. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt to the water along with the pasta. Stir the pasta and allow to come to a full rolling boil. Continue cooking the pasta until it is just tender - about 13 - 15 minutes. Drain off the water and leave the pasta in the cooking pot.
-Add the tomatoes, tomato paste and water to the cooked pasta and stir until blended. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary.
-Butter a medium-sized casserole dish and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
-Add the cheese cubes to the meat sauce and stir in to distribute evenly. Pour meat sauce over the noodles in the saucepan and stir one more time. Pour the beef pasta mixture into the baking dish then top with more grated cheddar cheese.
-Place in the oven and bake, uncovered, for 30 - 35 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbling. (If it browns too quickly, cover the top loosely with aluminum foil.) Remove from oven and let sit 10 minutes before serving.
Things to add: a departure from the original but perhaps more in keeping with our modern tastes - chopped parsley, sauted garlic, bacon bits, green onions, Italian seasoning, sauteed mushrooms, etc.
Mix the cooked pasta, meat sauce and cheese in a baking dish (the authentic 1920’s aluminum dish is optional!)
Bake until the sauce is bubbly and the cheese melted.
Let cool about 10 minutes before serving.
Just 4 ingredients (plus seasoning) for a hearty, happy meal - just like Grandma made it!
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