More comfort food--Porcupines

Porcupines
Betty Crocker’s 4 in 1 Cookbook Collection Copyright 1980
(Betty Crocker’s Hamburger Cookbook Copyright 1977, 1973)

1 pound ground beef
½ cup uncooked regular rice I used Uncle Ben's
½ cup water
1 small onion, chopped (about ¼ cup)
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon celery salt
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 can (15 ounces) tomato sauce
1 cup water
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

Mix meat, rice, ½ cup water, the onion and seasonings. Shape mixture by tablespoonfuls into 1 ½-inch balls.

TO COOK IN SKILLET (I used this method): Cook meatballs in large skillet over medium heat until brown. Add remaining ingredients; heat to boiling. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 45 minutes.

TO COOK IN OVEN: Place meatballs in ungreased baking dish. 8x8x2 inches. Mix remaining ingredients and pour over meatballs. Cover and bake in 350 degree oven 45 minutes. Uncover and bake 15 minutes longer.

Makes 4 or 5 servings.
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I've made porcupines previously. This recipe was a bit more flavorful but also a little harder to work with using the skillet method, since the meat mixture is very tender. I lost a lot of rice into the sauce which may have been because I used Uncle Ben's which doesn't have as much sticking power as regular rice but it was all I had besides brown rice.

I don't know why I don't make porcupines more often because I really like them and they're so simple to make. They are definitely a nostalgic food for me, since they remind me of stuffed cabbage filling.

This cookbook is a collection of Betty Crocker cookbooks bound into one book. The books are Cooking American Style, Salads, Hamburger, Do Ahead. That makes it a bit confusing as there is no consolidated index. I picked this up at the auction. I didn't buy any cookbooks last week. The bookman I was doing business with isn't really much of a businessman. Two weeks in a row I came by and bought several cookbooks, and both times he told me about the cookbooks he has in the truck that he needs to bring out but does he ever bring them out? No! He probably doesn't have anymore. Those two weeks I would walk up to the table and he would tell me that 'all those books are $1' but as I pick them up to look at them he starts with 'well, that one's Martha Stewart so I'll need $2 for that one' and 'that one has a lot of stuff in it so I'll need $2 for it', and so on with every book I touch LOL. So every book's a dollar? The man only has two small tables of books and some other junk.

Ah, the weekend is just about here. I have to make banana cake and another chocolate refrigerator cake for a 4th of July celebration (being held on June 30th). It's nice that people like certain recipes and want them again but it's a bit boring when I don't get to try something new.

Blast From The Past: Ditalini With Zucchini from February 2006. I know a lot of people are looking for zucchini recipes right about now.

Question of the Day: Have you ever tired of making something that people kept requesting?