Meat + sauce + cheese = delicious---Triple Cheese Patties

Triple Cheese Patties
Betty Crocker's 4-in-1 Cookbook Collection Copyright 1980
Betty Crocker's Hamburger Cookbook Copyright 1977,1973

1 1/2 lb ground beef
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp basil leaves
1/8 tsp garlic salt
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
1 egg
1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 tsp Pepper
6 Tbsp creamed cottage cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
8 oz Tomato Sauce
6 cheese slices*

* You can use either Mozzarella or Swiss cheese slices. I used mozzarella.

Mix the meat, bread crumbs, onion, egg and seasonings together.
Shape the mixture into 12 thin patties, each about 4-inches in diameter.
Top each of 6 patties with 1 Tbls of the cottage cheese, spreading to within 1/2-inch of the edge, sprinkle on 2 tsp of the Parmesan cheese, and top each patty with one of the remaining patties sealing the edges firmly.
Brown the patties in a large skillet over medium-high heat, turning once.
Drain off the fat and pour the tomato sauce over the patties. I also added about 1/4 cup of water.
Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes.
Place a cheese slice on each patty, cover, and heat until the cheese is melted, about 2 minutes.
Serve with the remaining sauce in the skillet poured over them.
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I meant to make these ahead of time but I never got around to it. I do have a little bit more time in the evenings these days and these were surprisingly quick to put together so it worked out.

I really liked these but I think I would leave out the cottage cheese if I made them again. The cottage cheese wasn't bad but it didn't really add anything. I'd prefer the taste and texture of ricotta cheese, I think. These reminded me of Beef Patties With Tomato Cheese Topping which I also really liked. I loved the meat, I loved the sauce and cheese on top. The cottage cheese did leak out a bit and make the sauce a bit creamy, which was nice, but otherwise, I could have lived without it.

I tried to remove the evidence of the cottage cheese from my son's portion but he still wanted to know what 'that white stuff' was. He wasn't interested in eating this. He's not been big on anything made with ground beef lately. He's funny like that. He'll love something for a while and then he won't have anything to do it with. Eventually he'll get into it again. I'm sort of like that too.

I was surprised that when I checked the web to see if this recipe was out there already (to save me from typing it over), I found it on several recipe sites. Obviously I'm not the only one who enjoyed it.

Okay, weekly recap. I'll be honest, it was a rushed week.

Monday: cubed steak sandwiches. I really wanted to make something else with the cubed steak I picked up on sale but I was desperate for a quick meal on Monday.

Tuesday: Rosemary Chuck, on the Griddler. It's better on the grill but it was too cold and yucky outside to grill. We had corn too. Again, I wanted to do something else with this chuck but I was pressed for time. Too bad I didn't find this nice chuck on sale in time to make the Chunky Beef Chili last week.

Wednesday: Honey-Glazed Spiced Pork Tenderloin, mashed potatoes and green beans.

Thursday: Triple Cheese Patties, Smart Taste pasta, buttered with some grated Parmesan cheese.

Salad every night.

Tonight: Pizza, one with canadian bacon and pineapple, one with pepperoni and onions.

Grocery shopping has almost been fun again lately. I've been finding some good deals. So many, I've had to pass things up. They had a beautiful ribeye roast on sale last week for $2.99/lb! I'm still kicking myself for passing it up but it was a 6-pound roast so it was $18. Even though it was a great deal (the ribeye steaks were $8.99/lb), I resisted and I regret it. There were just so many marked down meats after the holidays, I had to be choosey. They had a 10-pound crown roast of pork for 99 cents/lb that I passed up too. My freezer space if very limited right now. One freezer is packed with breast milk and we have venison coming tonight that I have no idea where it will go. I hope my husband has room in his freezer.

Are the grocery stores getting desperate? They had triple coupons on coupons up to $1 this week (maximum of 4 coupons). Combined with a BOGO free sale, I was able to get four packages of Hillshire Farms Lil' Smokies for under $5. They're regularly $3.99 each. We like to have appetizers on New Year's Eve so I'll use some of them then.

Question of the Day: Are you noticing better sales than usual in your grocery stores?