The Gorp That Ate Milwaukee

Did your mom ever make gorp when you were growing up? No - not that gorp.

Geez, you people call things by strange names.

When I was growing up, Gorp was the family name for the end-of-the-paycheck macaroni casserole my mom cooked. The reason it was called "gorp" instead of anything else is lost in family history; the recipe is not listed in the family recipe book my grandmother put together during the mid-seventies.

Personally, I think it was named after the sound it makes coming off the serving spoon and landing on your plate.

I hated it.

It was a texture thing; the original dish was made with elbow macaroni, broken up stewed tomatoes, a little bit of browned ground beef and (in my mother's case) a can of green peas. The pieces of stewed tomatoes were disconcerting, as cooked tomatoes were (in my child's mind, anyway) supposed to be a smooth, thick sauce. The peas...::shudder::...to this day I can't eat canned peas.

But tastes change, and hot stewed tomatoes are just fine with me. I realize it is only cottage cheese, refried beans and canned peas that have the evil-smooshy-lumpy-nasty-clinging texture, though the beans are gaining favor with me, provided they are hidden in taco sauce.

So tonight I'm making Gorp. Without the peas. Not sure of the exact amount of meat, I just browned the whole 1 pound package of ground chicken (didn't have hamburger in the house). It needed to be used, anyway. Added a can of diced tomatoes, but it didn't look like enough, so in went a can of tomato sauce. Oh - and the half can of tomato paste that was leftover from what I made for dinner Thursday. Hmmm...couple of cloves of fresh garlic, more garlic powder, basil, oregano, a little sugar to cut down the acid in the tomatoes.

Gee, that looks like a lot.

Let simmer until fairly thick. Cook big pot of elbow macaroni. Umm - three and half cups? Not sure. Mix with meat sauce, dump in really big baking dish, top with Parmesan cheese and bake.

The end result is enough Gorp to feed a family of eight. I think it may have bred while it was in the oven, spawning additional clumps of macaroni and sauce. If I hadn't taken it out when I did, it might have overrun the house. As it is, I will have a freezer full of little gorp-bombs for future dinners.

Just remember, when all those film makers come to Wisconsin to film because of the new tax breaks, looking for new script ideas, The Gorp That Ate Milwaukee (TM) is mine.