Michael Averett's Johnny Marzetti

So, a little back story on Johnny Marzetti. This casserole originated in the late 1800s with Teresa Marzetti, a restaurant owner in Columbus, Ohio. She was looking for an inexpensive, filling meal to serve students at nearby Ohio State University and created this dish, which she named after her brother-in-law, Johnny.

My version, Michael Averett’s Johnny Marzetti, pays homage to the original, but with my own southern twist. I added Velveeta® cheese, along with carrots, celery and peppers. The original recipe has mushrooms in it, but my household does not eat mushrooms. If you like mushrooms, feel free to add them.

Onion, Pepper, Celery, Carrots

I’m a big believer in keeping recipes simple. That’s why I cook a lot with onions, peppers, celery and carrots. And, this recipe is no exception.

Chop the onion and the green bell pepper with a 7-5/8" Petite Chef knife.

For the carrots, peel them with a Vegetable Peeler and then use Cutco’s 6" Vegetable Knife to chop them. The knife handles great when chopping vegetables with a crunchy texture.

Garlic is the only other ingredient that needs to be prepped. Mince it using the 7-5/8" Petite Chef by rocking the knife over a pile of sliced garlic.

 Simple Assembly

To make the Johnny Marzetti, begin by boiling the egg noodles in an oven-safe Dutch oven, but only until al dente. You want them to still be a little firm, since they’ll be going into the oven as part of the casserole.

Drain the noodles and remove them from the pan. Then brown the ground beef and cook the vegetables in the same pan. Season with Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Add a can of cream of mushroom soup and tomato soup, Velveeta cheese and cooked noodles. Mix it all together and pop in a 350 F oven for about 40 minutes.

If you don’t have an oven-safe Dutch oven, you can cook everything in a large pan and then transfer the mixture to a casserole dish to bake.

A Hearty, All-In-On Meal

This is an all-in-one dish that feeds lots of people making it a great choice for when you have family and friends over.

You can change it up as you see fit. For example, you can substitute the beef for turkey if you want.

My Johnny Marzetti recipe embodies family dinner. My family has always made it, so for me it really conjures up a lot of good memories.