Growing up, family reunions were huge.

Not just because it was a big event, but both sides of my family are pretty massive.

Dad’s side, with his hundreds of cousins, would fill up Waddell Park in Niles. There would be games, tons of people with kids shrieking, balmy heat and of course, all the food.

One time, mom got fancy and made her take on braciole (she didn’t use real steak, but instead “fake” steak — still crazy tasty), there were years of cold, cooked chicken or hot dogs, concession stands one year, and my favorite — the year of the corn casserole.

Grandma made the dish after coming back to visit following a move to Nebraska. No one, and I mean no one, went near the casserole, but being the (calculated) risk-taker I am, I dove in.

That was the day I became a better person.

Corn and hot summer days just go together, right? Add some spaghetti, cream cheese and creamed corn, and you have not only a possible recipe for disaster for your digestive tract in the heat, but also a delicious meal if you throw some chicken on the grill.

I’m not ashamed to admit I ate about half of what Grandma took, but then I also took the rest home. Can’t let it go to waste, right?

Being that Grandma lived in Nebraska and grew up here in Ohio, she knew her way around a casserole.

What I found in my internet meanderings showed that casseroles became a big thing for American culture when the country was just starting. It had to be all the togetherness and trying to live through seasons in a new, strange land, and dumping things in one pot to serve was an easy way to feed groups of people.

According to finedininglovers.com, the oldest casserole recipe is estimated to be from around 1250 and was cooked pasta in the form of sheets layered with cheese and spices. So what I’m understanding is this was an early take on lasagna.

Not too long ago I wrote about having that longing for a sense of home. Casseroles are a pretty good comfort food that offer that type of feeling where, as you’re eating them, you’re content.

There’s another reason I want to share this recipe.

Ask my coworkers, friends and family and they’ll tell you I’m pretty big on planning. I don’t need all the details ironed out, but more of an outline.

Since food is how I show I care, I love to have a library of recipes for any occasion.

While summer isn’t quite here (yet), be ready for Labor Day with this recipe. Until then, enjoy it with some sweet frozen corn.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t smart enough to ask for the recipe at the reunion, and no one else liked the danged dish enough to ask for it, either. For now, a food.com recipe will have to do, because it sounds similar to what I fell in love with years ago.

A quick plea — if you have a corn casserole recipe, please send it my way so I can find something closer to what Grandma made.

Corn Casserole

Ingredients

1 15-oz. can of corn, undrained

1 15-oz. can of low salt creamed corn

1 8-oz. box spaghetti noodles, uncooked and broken into pieces

4 oz. cream cheese, cubed

4 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, cubed

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 eggs

½ cup water

½ cup evaporated milk

Salt and pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Grease a 13-inch by 9-inch baking pan or dish.

Mix ingredients and pour into prepped dish.

Bake for 40 to 50 minutes and top is lightly browned.

Should feel like macaroni and cheese after it’s cooked.

Let rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Share your favorite recipes and memories with Features Editor Ashley Fox at afox@tribtoday.com.