ISO: Gina, re: American Chop Suey

Hi Gina :-) Do try the Shepherd's Pie recipe. We did enjoy it. As for American Chop Suey, it is another one of those recipes that neither DH's mother made nor mine and, I have never made it. I had a friend who used to make it when I was in high school and I remember that it was good. You see, I grew up in NY State (in the Finger Lakes area), and my father was Pennsylvanis Dutch so we ate fairly plain meals while I was growing up. Additionally, my brother and I "turned our noses up" at anything that had onions in it. My poor mother :-(!!! I have no idea how she fed us and we did like the things she fixed! (She made the world's best pot roast and beef pot pie!) Having grown up a long time ago, I can't imagine cooking without onions and garlic!!! Then there is my DH who is a "southern gentleman," whose Dad was from Louisiana and his, mother from East Texas. I have no idea if it helped (but I might recommend it to new brides), but I asked my MIL, when DH and I were first married, if she would show me how to cook some of the things that she made that DH liked. Oh my! Did I get a cooking education :-) I must say, that she had a great deal to do with how I cook today. She was a wonderful, creative cook in my eyes, who according to DH didn't know how to cook when she got married and learned from his father. So, maybe I should thank DH's father. At any rate, we aren't really New Englanders, certainly not by birth, only transplanted here. I wish that I could give you a fabulous recipe for American Chop Suey but I can't. As far as I can gather, it is sort of like barbeque in that there are hundreds of recipes for it out there. I guess you just have to try a few and see what you like best. Maybe someone will see the post and provide us both with an unbeatable recipe :-)! Meanwhile I will keep my eyes peeled for a good one and post it if I try it and it seems good. I hope you will too!