Meatloaf!

When I was growing up my mom made a run of the mill meatloaf. Your basic ground beef (sometimes she added ground pork sausage) with bread crumbs (or oatmeal or cracker crumbs), celery and onions. Sometimes she put ketchup on top, but not always. When I married Dina I was introduced to her mother’s meatloaf which we made for years. Mom’s World Famous Meatloaf. It is good and we liked it, but the boys were not so keen on the chunks of vegetables and the spice mix.

So recently I have been experimenting with different meatloaf recipes. What I have come up with is a fusion of Paula Deen’s Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf and Cook’s Country’s Glazed Meatloaf. My recipeis called “John’s BBQ Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf”. It seems to be a hit!

John’s BBQ Cheeseburger Meatoaf

Ingredients
10 slices	Bacon (fried crisp and crumbled)
1 pound	Ground Beef (leaner is better)
2 large	Eggs (slightly beaten)
¼ cup	Panko Bread Crumbs
¼ cup	Mayonnaise
1 tablespoon	Worcestershire Sauce
¼ teaspoon	Salt
¼ teaspoon	Ground Black Pepper
8 ounces	Sharp Cheddar Cheese(grated or shredded)

Preheat oven to 350° F.

1. In a large bowl, combine bacon, ground beef, eggs and panko crumbs
2. Add mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper and mix well
3. Fold In cheddar cheese until mixed throughout the meatloaf
4. Form into a loaf shape and place into 9″ x 13″ baking dish
5. Bake for about 40 minutes at 350° F.
6. Remove from oven and cover with BBQ glaze below
7. Return to oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until meat is no longer pink

BBQ Glaze

While the meatloaf is baking, make the glaze

Glaze Ingredients
1 cup	Ketchup
¼ cup	Packed Brown Sugar
2 tablespoons	Cider Vinegar
½ teaspoon	Hot Sauce

1. In a small sauce pan, combine all ingredients
2. Bring to simmer and simmer 5 minutes until slightly thickened.
3. Remove from heat until time to place on meatloaf

Looking For Something Different To Take To The Holiday Party?

Need a new recipe for your upcoming holiday party or potluck? Here’s the one I made for our holiday potluck at work this week. Although my family and I are devout carnivores I usually try out a vegetarian dish for our work get-togethers since we have several vegetarians in our office. This recipe is easy to make and has great flavor. Enjoy!

John’s Quinoa Salad

Ingredients:

• 2 cup quinoa
  
• 3 cups cold water
  
• 1/4 tsp salt
  
• 1 cup pickled green beans (aka Dilly Beans), cut into ¼”-1/2″ pieces
  
• 3 carrots, peeled and diced into small pieces
  
• 1 cup roasted red and yellow peppers, chopped into small pieces
  
• 2 medium ripe tomatoes, diced into small pieces
  
• 1 medium cucumber, peeled and diced into small pieces
  
• 1 cup Kalamata olives, chopped into small pieces
  
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
  
• 2 cups feta cheese, crumbled
  

Dressing:

• 4 Tbsp lemon juice
  
• ½ cup olive oil
  
• ½ tsp salt
  
• ¼ tsp coarsely ground pepper
  

Directions:

1. Soak the quinoa 5 minutes in cold water
   
2. Rinse thoroughly 2 times, pour off the water and drain through a large fine mesh strainer
   
3. Place in 2 qt pot with the water and salt
   
4. Cover the pot, bring to a full boil, turn the heat to low, and cook for 15 minutes
   
5. Remove from heat and set aside to cool while you prepare the remainder of ingredients and the dressing
   
6. Cook carrots until tender-crisp
   
7. Chop the beans, tomatoes, peppers, cucumber and olives
   
8. Blend dressing ingredients with a whisk or shake in a jar
   
9. Stir together the vegetables, walnuts and dressing in a large bowl
   
10. Add the quinoa to the mixture and mix thoroughly, but gently
    
11. Cover and chill several hours, or overnight, to blend the flavors
    
12. Stir in the crumbled feta cheese just prior to serving
    

Notes:

1. The Dilly Beans I use are from a recipe in the Ball Canning Book made this summer from greens beans from our garden.
   
2. The roasted red & yellow peppers I use are a canned variety that we get from Cash & Carry
   
3. I adapted this recipe from a recipe on savvyvegetarian.com