A favorite, fast, meatless meal . . .

1 pound spaghetti
10 peeled cloves of garlic
1/2 stick butter
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 to 1 cup chicken broth
Freshly ground pepper
Fresh basil (optional), shredded in strips
Salt to taste
1 cup freshly grated Romano or Parmesan Cheese

Smash the garlic with the flat of a knife blade and finely chop. Smashing the garlic helps release the flavor. Very gently saute the garlic in the butter until the garlic is soft but not browned.

Meanwhile, boil the spaghetti until it is just barely done. It will cook a bit more in the final preparation and you don't want mushy pasta. Drain, and put spaghetti back in the pot. Add the garlic,/butter and mix thoroughly. With the stove set on a low flame, add the eggs and quickly stir them in so they cook and spread out evenly. Add the cheese, pepper, and basil and mix. Add salt and serve immediately.

This is a nice meal for a meatless Friday and goes well with a big salad and some sour dough bread, lightly toasted.

Interesting thing about Fridays and no meat. Everyone (I hope!) strictly observes them during Lent but seem to think that it does't apply the rest of the year. Unfortunately, many pastors have not been clear on this. Meatless Fridays have not exactly been changed but we are offered the option of choosing another form of penance for Friday. Too many Catholics I have talked to seem to view meatless Fridays as a thing of the past. The 'rule' is that unless you come up with a definite alternative, you should still refrain from meat. We have found it more of a penance and less of a strain on our brains to observe all Fridays as a meatless day.