It was a lovely weekend during which I cooked and cooked and cooked and watched football. Glad that Fitch won its sixth game, UConn finally won (by a lot) and the Patriots did, too.

As for the cooking, that was great fun.

I had been looking through my paper files as opposed to computer files.

I found some that I make every couple of months and others I haven’t made in years.

Under “S” for spaghetti and meatballs, I noticed my own sauce and meatballs and started salivating.

I love that recipe because it is old-timey and amounts can vary by how much parmesan I have in the fridge, how many cans of Muir Glen are in the pantry and how much stale bread is on the counter or packets of bread crumbs in the freezer.

It was delicious, although next time I will let the bread crumbs hydrate in some milk.

I shared the sauce with neighbors and friends.

I also baked a half-sheet full of Ina Garten’s Outrageous Brownies. The recipe calls for a pound of butter and enough dark chocolate to float a boat.

Some also went to the neighbors and the rest is in the freezer.

Back to my cookbook files (computer and paper).

Recently, friends on Facebook sent me a post from Tyler Florence, who has made lots of money on cookbooks and television shows.

What he said in his post is that nobody needs recipes anymore.

Really?

I have been cooking for decades, and I still find recipes that surprise me.

I subscribe to cooking magazines, find recipes in newspapers and get them from friends.

I probably cook from new recipes every week, maybe even more.

I find ones I starred in my cookbooks and haven’t made in a long time.

One of those is below.

You can use any white fish, inexpensive (like tilapia) or expensive (halibut, which is delicious).

tilapia and Mashed Yams with Pancetta-Sage Breadcrumbs

From Bon Appetit, January 2010, page 42

Yield: 4 servings

2 ounces thinly sliced pancetta (Italian bacon), chopped

1 cup fresh breadcrumbs (from French or sourdough bread with crust, ground in food processor)

1 tablespoon plus 1 and one-half teaspoons chopped fresh sage

2 pounds medium red-skinned sweet potatoes, pierced all over with fork*

3 tablespoons butter, divided

four 5- to 6-ounce tilapia fillets or eight 2- to 3-ounce fillets

Saute pancetta in large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Transfer to small bowl. Add breadcrumbs and 1 tablespoon chopped sage to drippings in skillet; stir over medium-high heat until breadcrumbs are almost crisp, 5 minutes.

Transfer to bowl with pancetta. Cool. Reserve skillet.

Place sweet potatoes on plate in microwave on high until very soft, 5 to 8 minutes per side, depending on size of sweet potato.

Transfer potatoes to work surface. Cut in half lengthwise; scoop out pulp and place in medium glass bowl. Discard skin. Add remaining 1 and one-half teaspoons chopped sage and 1 tablespoon butter to potatoes; mash until almost smooth. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Sprinkle fish fillets with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in same nonstick skillet over medium-high heat Add fish fillets and cook until golden brown on outside and just opaque in center, 3 to 4 minutes per side.

If necessary, rewarm sweet potatoes in microwave; divide them among 4 plates. Top each serving with 1 fish fillet, sprinkle generously with pancetta-sage breadcrumbs and serve.

*In truth, none of the sweet potatoes sold as yams are really yams. Real yams are large, starchy and not sweet at all. Any sweet potato will do beautifully with this recipe.

Lee White lives in Groton. She can be reached at leeawhite@aol.com.