Day 28: Meatloaf (by default)

Tonight was supposed to be my mom's awesome lasagna, but after three trips to the grocery store, due to forgotten ingredients, when I discovered I was still missing something I threw in the towel and looked elsewhere for dinner. I WILL make it tomorrow night.

The meatloaf is my mom's recipe too. I have made it several times before, and it never tastes like hers'. However, unlike other recipes, I actually know what the root of the problem is...I use 93% lean ground beef so it never gets juicy. Tonight I sucked it up and used 80% lean instead. We'll see if it really makes that big of a difference.

I hate touching raw meat; so even though this recipe is ridiculously easy, I have a hard time making it because the ONLY way to mix and mold it is with your bare hands. YUCK!!!!

My favorite part of this recipe is that it always rescues me in a pinch because ninety five percent of the time I have all the ingredients in the house to make it and thank goodness tonight was one of those times or I may have failed my mission.

Mom's Meatloaf
2lb 80%lean ground beef
salt/pepper
2 eggs
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 cup onions(fresh or frozen)
1/2 cup green pepper(fresh or frozen)
Ketchup

Step 1: Mix all of the ingredients except ketchup in bowl.

Step 2: Put in loaf pan(grease if it is not a non stick pan)

Step 3: Bake at 350 degrees for 1hr 30min

Step 4: Top with ketchup once meatloaf is brown on top. Put back in the oven for remaining time.

Kitchen Play by Play: Even though this was a last minute decision, it was in the oven 5 minutes after I decided to make it. I do not like leftover meatloaf, so I always cut this recipe in half for us. I use 1lb meat, 1/4 cup breadcrumbs, 1 egg and do not measure the onions and green peppers. I ALWAYS use frozen veggies. I only cook it for about 1 hour, but always check the middle before officially taking it out. Since it is only 1lb of meat, it only fills a little over half of the loaf pan. No biggie, still cooks the same and stays in loaf form. Tonight we had green beans and mandarin oranges to complete the meal.

The finished product
The Verdict:
Nicole: The meat makes a difference. It was really hard to look past the quarter of an inch of meat grease that was floating on the bottom of the pan, but I was hungry. It was my best meatloaf yet even if I had to strain the grease from my piece as I lifted it out of the loaf. It was delicious. Super moist, very flavorful. Perfectly cooked. I doused it in ketchup and enjoyed every bite. I give tonight's meatloaf a strong 4.

Paul- gives it a 3.5. "meatloaf has never been one of my favorites, and I was gearing myself up for lasagna." *

Austin-did not touch it. He ate all his green beans and oranges, but didn't want meat. It may have something to do with the fact that he had a cheeseburger with ketchup for lunch. He was "meated" out.

* I just told him if he really wanted it that bad no one was stopping him from going to the store. In his defense though, he was in the middle of mowing the lawn.