Momma's Tarlienne and My Tarlerinine ~ beef, corn and noodle casseroles

 So what's in a name?

This is the time of year that I kinda get a warm feeling to bring out family favorites, recipes that made history in our household as not only being exceptionally good but uncommonly unheard of to the rest of the world. At least we thought so, as we grew older and shared these meals with others, folks around exclaimed they had never heard of such yet gladly cleaned their plate at our tables.

Of late, I have amused myself with seeing such wonderful, family recipes being shared by many of you and those in the subscribed papers and magazines. The names of these heirlooms are priceless. Several weeks ago before Thanksgiving, Aunt Caroline's Sweet Potato Bomb got my attention, as did MeMaw's Sticky Dream Pie and recently, Polly's Pink Stuff.  Some just have the interest factor like Granny's Scrambled Ham, Uncle Red's Smoked Butt, and Aunt Lucy's Goosey Gander.

The recipe today is one from my own kitchen derived from one of my Mommas, Tarlienne, and one I have yet to come across, at least with the same name. Somewhere along the way, I suppose the name of hers became mistakenly misspoken as in the pronunciation differed with our dialect and all; imagine that if you can. There are two with similar spelling relating to her recipe; one being Talerini, similar in ingredients adding chili powder and omitting the mushrooms. Then there is the other, almost a clone use of ingredients as Mommas called Talerine with the heavy addition of black olives. Since all recipes have one common component being noodles, I suspect all names are derivative of Tagliarini, an Italian thin noodle. The recipe Taglarini goes in another direction with the use of cream corn and tomato soup along with the mainstay of beef, corn and noodles. However,  a direction that I wanted to try, using Momma's recipe, leaning toward a Talerini but with a Tex-Mex, chuck-wagon meaty, cheesy and tomato-like appeal is the one I came up with - Tarlerinine. Enjoy!

Tarlerinine

1 -16 ounce package Ruote (wagon wheel) pasta, just undercooked
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 medium bell pepper, chopped
Taco seasoning mix
1/2 cup beef broth
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 can kernel corn, drained
1 -14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes, not drained
1 -16 ounce can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
salt and pepper to taste
16 ounces shredded American melting cheese blend
1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large skillet, cook the ground beef over medium high heat until brown and liquid has reduced to just the grease in the pan. Add the onion and bell pepper, tossing to coat and cook for about 3 minutes. Remove from heat, push meat mixture to one side, and tilting the pan, soak up any grease with paper towels on the opposite side. Return to heat and stir in the seasoning mix stirring well. Add the beef broth and tomato sauce and bring to a boil. Simmer on medium low until thickened, about 10 minutes. Stir in the corn, tomatoes and gently fold in the beans. Add salt and pepper to taste and fold in the melting cheese.

Place the pasta in a 13x9-inch greased casserole dish. Spoon the meat mixture over the pasta and spread evenly. Mix with a spoon to randomly toss about the mixture. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

Remove from oven, remove foil and sprinkle the cheddar cheese on top. Bake another 15 minutes uncovered until cheese melts.

Note: Serve with buttered tortillas, cornbread and add broken corn chips as a topping along with sour cream, salsa and pickled jalapenos.

Momma's Tarlienne
from Grits to Guacamole Cookbook

6 ounce package egg noodles, cooked
1 large onion, chopped
2 tablespoons butter
1 pound lean ground beef
1 can kernel corn, drained
1 can mushrooms, rinsed and drained
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1/2 pound grated sharp cheddar cheese -divided
salt and pepper to taste

Cook the onion in the butter until clear and add the beef. Cook until browned and remove excess grease. Stir in the corn, mushrooms, tomatoes and half of the cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste. Place cooked noodles in a buttered casserole dish and pour the meat mixture covering the noodles.Cook covered at 350 degrees F. for 30 to 45 minutes. Remove cover, top with remaining cheese and bake another 20 minutes until cheese starts to brown.