It is time to re-visit the life, legend and food of Marilyn Monroe.
Marilyn Monroe began as a model and rose to become the most famous actress in Hollywood. She was often cast as the dumb blonde in films like "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes", "How to Marry A Millionaire" and "Some Like It Hot". Behind the scenes, she took her craft seriously and fought for more dramatic roles. Films such as "Bus Stop" and "The Misfits" showed she could tackle parts with greater depth. Her early death in 1962 cemented her status as a tragic Hollywood figure, but there is so much more to the story.
Over sixty years after her death, Marilyn Monroe is still making headlines. Several of her items have recently gone up for auction and the Netflix film "Blonde" has stirred up plenty of buzz and controversy. There are countless books, documentaries, features films and podcasts that have chronicled her life and body of work. Monroe is an endlessly interesting person and time has done nothing to diminish her hold on the public.
Recipe
This lasagne recipe was clipped from a newspaper and turned up in one of Marilyn Monroe's cookbooks that was up for auction in 2021. Surprisingly, they didn't sell. In any case, there is always plenty to talk about regarding Marilyn and this felt like the perfect excuse to do another episode.
Preparation time: About forty minutes. Cost per serving: About 20 cents.
Ingredients
8 ounces lasagna noodles or any wide noodles
2 eight ounce cans tomato sauce
2 cups creamed cottage cheese
1/2 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 pound cheddar cheese, thinly sliced
1/4 cup graded Parmesan or Romano cheese
1/2 cup buttered bread crumbs
Directions
1. Cook noodles according to directions on package. Drain.
2. Mix the tomato sauce with the cottage cheese, basil, salt, Worcestershire sauce and onion. Arrange alternate layers of noodles, cheddar cheese and the sauce mixture in a buttered two and one-half quart casserole. Top with crumbs that have been mixed with grated cheese. Bake in a moderate oven (375 degrees) for about 25 minutes. Yield: Six servings.
Special Guests
Benjamin Meißner is the President of SOME LIKE IT HOT! The International Marilyn Monroe Fan Club of Germany and editor of MARILYN TODAY magazine. He greatly admirers Marlene Dietrich and has made several visits to the The Deutsche Kinemathek Film Museum in Berlin to study her collection.
Kristen Lopez is a pop culture essayist and TV editor for IndieWire. She has worked as an entertainment journalist for over 15 years, with her articles appearing at Variety, MTV, TCM, and Roger Ebert. A California native, Kristen was raised in a small suburb near Sacramento and graduated with a Masters in English from California State University, Sacramento. She is the creator of the classic film podcast, Ticklish Business. Based in Los Angeles, she enjoys reading and finding Old Hollywood connections in her neighborhood in her free time. But Have You Read the Book? is her first book.
The Final Result
I decided to use mozzarella instead of cheddar for my version. This was easy to make and tasted great! (Photos below by Benjamin Meißner)
Most of Marilyn Monroe's film career is available on DVD and her films are frequently shown on Turner Classic Movies.
I found several other articles about Marilyn Monroe's eating habits. In 1952 Monroe wrote about her diet in Pageant Magazine in an article called "How I Stay in Shape".
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