Mmmmeatloaf

For some reason or another, meatloaf has been one of Dan’s favorite things that I’ve made. I can’t take 100 percent credit though, as I “borrowed” from my Aunt Vera’s web site (www.veryvera.com - delicious mail order cakes and recipes you can borrow, too).

When I first made this for Dan, he told me that it was a “top five” item I’ve made. From there, it’s almost been a comical snowball effect. Dan once invited his friend Jason to join us, who bragged to a friend that he enjoyed some of my “famous meatloaf.” After that, some other friends heard I was making meatloaf one night and graciously invited themselves over.

I am thinking it would be fun to start blogging recipes that go over well with Dan and my friends. So this shall be the first of this series. It is my hope that this recipe and others I plan to post eventually are crowd pleasers for friends and family.

Cheesy Meatloaf

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup onions (chopped)
• 1 small package white mushrooms (sliced)
• 1 and ¼ pounds ground round or ground sirloin
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup Ritz crackers (ground into breadcrumb consistency)
• 1.5 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce (I favor Classico’s Four Cheese)
• 1 pound mozzarella cheese (shredded)
• (optional) garlic and Italian seasonings, to taste

Preparation:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Sautee onions and mushrooms in butter or olive oil. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, hand mix ground meat, eggs, crushed Ritz crackers, cooked onions and mushrooms, salt, pepper, optional seasoning and approx 1 cup to 1.5 cups spaghetti sauce (enough to make the mixture stick together).
• Lay out two pieces of wax paper (approx a foot long each) side by side so that they overlap approx four inches.
• Remove mixture from bowl and place on wax paper, shaping like a large rectangle.
• Sprinkle cheese atop meat mixture.
• Roll meat like a jelly roll, starting at one end and rolling on top of itself until a log-type shape is made. Pinch at the ends.
• Gently transfer meatloaf to a cookie sheet.
• Bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees.
• Remove from oven, pour over loaf most of the remaining spaghetti sauce so that loaf is covered. Cook 15 additional minutes.
• Remove from oven. Cool for 5 to 10 minutes then slice and serve.

 

 

 

 

Why? Why...

Do people buy and/or rent movies without checking out their ratings beforehand?

Crafty Cravings for 2008

This holiday season, as I spend more days away from work since I started working (a full 11 days, I believe), I have much more time than usual to think about hobbies--and hobbies forgotten or regretfully unpursued. There are so many things I want to learn how to do, so many things I want to create.

I feel that my 2008 resolutions ought to include a handful of crafty aspirations. But this means that I need to both narrow down my goals and be disciplined enough to carry out a few projects. AND I have to finish Dan's quilt before I get started on something new.

Ideas:

Create a handful more scarves (these are a hit with friends and family and are relatively easy to execute while watching TV or killing time at an airport)

Practice photography. I've been on enough photoshoots for work (both with the annual report and our internal magazine) and looked through enough cool photography to be able to take a decent picture. Unfortunately, up to this point, I've really only taken your typical "friends night out" kind of pictures of snapshots of the family during regular get togethers. I would really enjoy doing some neat architecture shots or outdoor shots - maybe even neat people-focused photography using friends and loved ones.

Create a handful of articles of clothing. With Tim Gunn and the balance of the "Project Runway" cast for inspiration, how cool would it be to create a handful of funky skirts or simple tunic dresses? I am too intimidated to start with anything complicated (i.e. requiring super correct measurements or zippers or button holes) but would like to give a few simple patterns a shot. I have a trusty sewing machine that's been with me through Dan's t-shirt quilt; I hope she would be a trusty companion for a project of this nature.

Write a truly creative piece. This could be a short story or a freelance magazine article. I don't even know where to start; however, I do know this is something I want to do. I cite Atlanta Magazine as my primary inspiration. I've never been a fantastic or interesting writer yet I want to give this a try nonetheless. Afterall, I feel slightly to be a disappointment holding a journalism degree and not being too much of a journalist. Sure, I write some human interest stories for our work magazine and hold the title of "editor" of this magazine... but it's just not the same.

Let's see what makes the cut. Hopefully something does.

I Want to Know Why...

I want to know why my Tom Tom (navigation) can tell me where I am and where I am going but requires me to manually put in the time. Seriously, shouldn't it know how to find the time itself?

Strange How Things Work

It's always amazing/surprising to see who your allies are during a bad/stressful situation. Thank you for reminding me what's important and what perspective is beneficial in a time like this.

Feelings of Disgust

It’s tough to pinpoint when my hate began. I don’t recall waking up one day with a feeling of pure hatred; therefore, I have decided I must have developed this aversion over time.

Maybe it was the advent of AOL instant messenger and all the cute little fonts, icons and colors that went along with our constant teenage communication. Maybe it was the popularity of this awful trend in children’s birthday invitations, billboards and brochures. Unfortunately, this trend is still out there despite more and more options in design.

To what am I referring?

Comic sans.

While I am no designer, it does make me sleep better at night knowing I’ve read similar feelings on the likes of Wikipedia and graphic artists’ blogs. Believe it or not, there are public campaigns to ban comic sans and limit its use. These people cite bad typography and awkward kerning as well as inappropriate usage (i.e. the font not being originally intended to be blown up or used in word processing software).

I wish I knew when it all started for me. It’s possible that it’s original intention of use with children’s software fonts and text on children’s toys (again, I cite Wikipedia) conjures up immature, adolescent and amateur feelings for me when I see it in adult-made e-mails or other printed collateral. Maybe it’s blatant overuse.

I can tell you this much: saying “comic sans” aloud or seeing text written in this font makes me cringe and my face snarl in disgust.

Or maybe, just maybe, I am just crazy.