Chili Mac and a Walk Down Memory Lane

First of all...my apologies. You are probably wondering where the pasta is? After all this is my entry for this week's Presto Pasta Night, graciously hosted by Daphne of More Than Words. And to add insult to injury... well read on.

When I was a kid in Montreal, my father would take us to Piasso Tomasso's Restaurant for special events. Mama Tomasso stayed in the kitchen, although her image was on the menu and a giant photo graced the lobby. Mostly I remember kids birthday parties with Magic Tom (I think her son, but I could just be making that up) amazing us with his prestidigitation. The restaurant is long gone but the other day I did see Piasso Tomasso Lasagna in the frozen food section of Costco.

My Auntie Shelley's Lasagna had a secret (okay not so secret since I shared it here and in my cookbook Every Kitchen Tells Its Stories) ingredient....Piasso Tomasso Meat Sauce. Unfortunately, I haven't found any in years. But I digress...

The one dish I would always order (in fact my mother would often have my dad stop for some take out on his way home from work) wasn't even on the menu! It was called Chili Mac and I'm drooling just thinking about it now.

Recently I made my favorite chili (which I thought I shared here, but didn't....it is in my book, if you have it and I promise to add it here soon) and between the visit to Costco and the fact that life will really be busy around here as of this afternoon (more in a minute), I thought I'd use the leftover chili to make my own chili mac. Not hard really, boil up some pasta (I like long slurpy noodles like bucantini or spaghetti) and top it with the chili. It's the red kidney beans that makes it chili mac rather than just bolognese...although is there such a thing as JUST bolognese? I think not.

Anyway, I'm rambling, but I did want to share my dish for Presto Pasta Night before the joyful chaos sets in. Auntie Sharron is coming in from Toronto for the big event...Boaz's brother or sister arrives tomorrow!

Don't forget to send your entries in to the fantastic Daphne of More Than Words who's hosting this week. Her email is daphnesu16(at) yahoo(dot)com and a cc to me - ruth (at) 4everykitchen (dot) com.

Plus...all the Presto Pasta Night Roundups dating back to March, 2007, see who's hosting for the next four weeks and check out guidelines and tips for entering and hosting.

If you have any ideas for a topic for Presto Pasta Night, let me know. Facebook members, please visit the Presto Pasta Gang on Facebook