At 88 years young, Dot Spiegel enjoys home cooking and toe-tapping music.

"I was raised in Rochester, New York and learned to cook during the Depression with good examples from my New England mother," says Dorothy Spiegel, 88, who has been making Hamburger Pie since her teenage years.

Dorothy's daughter Connie still enjoys the tried-and-true dish, calling it "one of Mom's economical innovations from the '50s. It uses whatever one might have on hand. The biscuit topping is a nice contrast to the gravy and vegetables underneath."

Besides cooking, Dorothy remains active writing poetry and reading books. And when Connie and her husband host musical gatherings at their mountain home in Gainesboro, Tennessee, Dorothy is never far from the sounds of folk, gospel and bluegrass coming from dulcimers, mandolins and fiddles. "Mom loves music so she always has a lovely time when we get together," says Connie. "She practices the violin and keyboard so maybe we can get her to join in with us.

"My mother is creative, active in mind and body and 'spunky' for her age. I learned from her to keep trying even if it takes a while. We don't 'not try' just because it would be hard. Challenges can be fun."

Hamburger Pie

Dorothy shares, "My kids called this Hamburger Glop and preferred it with the biscuit dough used as dumplings with the pan covered and cooked on top of the stove."

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 TB. flour
• 1 Cup frozen carrot pieces or 3 medium carrots cut in coins and boiled 4 minutes
• 1 Cup frozen or canned green peas, drained
• 2 Cups water
• 2 tsp. BEEF SOUP BASE
• 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tsp. PENZEYS PEPPER

Biscuit Crust:

• 11/2 Cups flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 Cup shortening or butter
• 1/2 Cup milk
• 1 tsp. PARSLEY

If you are going to bake the dish, preheat oven to 375-400°. In a skillet over medium-high heat, brown the beef and onion. Drain. Add the flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the carrots, peas, water, BEEF SOUP BASE, Worcestershire sauce and PEPPER and stir to combine. Spoon into a 2 qt. casserole dish if you are going to bake the pie.

For the crust: Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and shortening with a blender or your fingers. Add the milk and PARSLEY and mix well. Spoon the topping batter in dollops over the filling. If it's going in the oven, smooth it out over the top of the casserole, for stovetop cooking just leave the dollops. Bake at 375-400° until the topping is slightly brown, 10-15 minutes, or cover and cook on the stove over medium heat 10-15 minutes (the topping doesn't brown much for stovetop cooking).

Nutritional Information: Servings 6;
Serving Size 1 cup (287g); Calories 450; Calories from fat 230; Total fat 25g; Cholesterol 50mg; Sodium 790mg; Carbohydrate 34g; Dietary Fiber 3g.