Meatloaf

I’m in the midst of a deep freeze here in Chicago. If it’s not snowing, it’s icy. We've had days where the wind chills are in the 20-below-zero range. We've had Snowmageddon. And I have had a bottle of water that was accidentally left in my car freeze solid.

On days like these, I refuse, kicking and screaming try to avoid leaving the warm embrace of my fleecy blanket, cuddled up on the couch watching a movie, Say Yes to the Dress, or Top Chef all while eating anything and everything I can get my hands on that will make me feel the slightest bit warmer!


As a kid, I turned my nose up at meatloaf, I always saw it as a ‘mystery meat’ platter. I don’t even recall whether I gave the poor slice of meat on my plate a chance before I tried to hide it in an air vent, or spread it around on my plate so that it looked like I at least tried some. Once I realized it was essentially a nicely seasoned, moist hamburger formed into a loaf, my prejudice vanished.


Few things are as easy or as comforting on a cold, snowy day than meatloaf. And, thankfully, this recipe is so easy, most people will have everything they need right in the freezer, fridge and/or pantry. If you don’t want to make two loaves, halve the recipe and make it in a single loaf pan. I usually make both loves, mainly because it freezes so well and if I can get two meals out of one prep period, I am going to do it.


This went perfectly with a side of parmesan garlic mashed potatoes, and sprinkled with just a bit of parsley.

Meatloaf

4 slices of bread, cut or torn into ~1/2” cubes

2 eggs

3/4 c milk

1 Tbsp Worcestershire

1/4 c celery

1/4 c onion

1/8 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp poultry seasoning

1 1/2 lb ground beef

1/2 lb ground pork

Glaze

¼ c ketchup

2 Tbsp light corn syrup

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, soak bread crumbs in milk.

Add egg and beat with a hand mixer until well combined and few/if any chunks of bread remain.

Add celery, onion, Worcestershire, salt, pepper and poultry seasoning. Mix well.

Add beef and pork and mix gently but thoroughly.

Divide meat mixture in half and form into two loaves in two separate loaf pans or in one 8” x 8” pan.

Bake for 1 hour.

For the topping, mix together ketchup and corn syrup in a small bowl.

After 1 hour, top with ketchup/corn syrup mixture and bake for an additional fifteen minutes.

Serve.

Pulled Pork

If you hand me a plate of any type of slow-cooked meat, you can be pretty sure I’ll polish off the entire thing. Pit beef, ribs, brisket, pot roast and especially pulled pork. We have a few good barbecue restaurants by us but, even so, I like having the option of making it at home some days. I think I also feel better because I trim most of the fat off of the roasts before slow-cooking them, and I know exactly what is in my spice rub. I can tailor the rub to suit our personal tastes, and the leftover pork freezes perfectly for another, even faster meal in the future.

Making delicious pulled pork at home is easier than most people think. You can slow cook it in your oven at about 220 degrees as per the original recipe, but I use my crock pot. I feel a lot safer leaving for work with my pork roast in a crock pot instead of leaving my oven on all day. I’ve tried several different spice rubs, both homemade and pre-packaged, and my husband and I both agree that the current mix I’m using is a winner to both of our taste buds. The cinnamon adds unique, but subtle warmth to the pork and a little punch that really accentuates the natural flavors nicely.
We use a bottled sauce because we have yet to find a recipe we both like as much as Famous Dave’s Rich and Sassy sauce, a variety of Open Pit sauces or KC Masterpiece’s options. I may have to try the recipe my parents were raving about from the Neely’s on Food Network, but sometimes, especially on a work night, simple is better. It takes practically no time at all to get the pork seasoned and in the crock pot, and after cooking all day, the shredding process is incredibly easy, the pork practically falls apart before I can get to it with a fork.
A few buns, some sauce, and we’re in business. With a good sauce, this pork doesn’t need much else. If you really wanted to sauté some veggies to put on your sandwich, you could easily do that, but I like mine plain. And if pulled pork isn’t classy enough, we really like to up the ante with a side of tater tots.
If that doesn’t convince you to give it a try, think of this – at one of our local barbecue places, a barbecue pork sandwich for lunch costs $5.49. This recipe yields about six servings. The picnic roast (or pork butt/shoulder) was 8 dollars for about 3 pounds, buns were about 50 cents each at our grocery store bakery and the barbecue sauce was 6 dollars (but of course we didn’t come close to using all of it). Assuming you already have the other ingredients in your pantry, this meal costs approximately $2.83 per sandwich. For six servings, that’s a savings of just under 16 dollars. It may not seem like much, but add that up over a period of time, and you could have some pretty serious savings. I think it makes the sandwich taste that much better when I realize just how much we can save making some of our favorite restaurant foods at home.

Try it out, you won’t regret it!
Pulled Pork Sandwiches
Serves 4

Adapted from Chocolate Shavings

Ingredients
3 lbs of pork Shoulder, or pork butt
1 tablespoon of paprika
A pinch of ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon of onion powder
1 teaspoon of kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon of freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup of low sodium chicken stock
2 bay leaves
Small ciabatta breads
1/2cup of your favorite barbecue sauce

Directions
In a small bowl, add the paprika, onion powder, cinnamon, salt and pepper. Using your hands, rub the mixture on all sides of the pork. Set to marinate in the fridge for an hour.

Place in a slow cooker. Add chicken stock. Cook on low setting for 6 to 8 hours, until the pork is very tender.

Remove the pork from the slow cooker and discard the remaining liquid. Shred the pork using a couple of forks. Place the meat back in the slow cooker along with the barbecue sauce and continue to cook for another 20-30 minutes until the pork is hot again. Serve on buns with extra barbecue sauce.

Enjoy!

Want to Wine and Dine But Short on Time? (Recipe – Rack of Lamb in Red Wine Sauce)

Getting a puppy has been such a huge blessing and source of joy for my hubby and I, but it is also not without its challenges. With Cody, we’re always trying to make sure he’s staying out of trouble, and we don’t give him free reign of the house yet; he’s a bit of a chewer – mostly on his toys, but sometimes on slippers, socks and chairs - and is still not 100% housebroken. He is usually pretty good about letting us know when he has to go outside, but he still has the rare ‘whoops’ moments.

Our weeknight dinner routine hasn’t really changed much since getting Cody; our quick and easy recipes still deliver satisfying meals in minimal time. However, I have noticed a change in my weekend cooking routine. Before Cody, when we would plan for a date night, I would almost always want to be in the kitchen a majority of the day preparing the meal. I enjoyed doing so, and I know it was appreciated.

Now with the puppy, our date nights have been mostly pushed aside. Instead of spending all of Saturday afternoon in the kitchen, we’re spending our time playing fetch, going for walks and doting on our puppy. So even on the weekends I would just be pulling dinner ideas from my typical weeknight repertoire.

Though my priorities in time management have shifted, I am realized that doesn’t have to mean we sacrifice our date nights. I needed to figure out how I could make a nice meal suitable for a romantic evening but still have time to spend with my family. So what can you prepare that sets a romantic vibe with limited time? This dish.

This meal only takes a little longer than my typical weeknight dinner menu items, but we are definitely setting the tone of a “Date Night” by straying a little from our typical weeknight proteins like chicken breast and pork chops, and splurging a little bit on things like filet mignon, or a rack of lamb. This meal is so deceptively simple, you’ll feel like you could have easily ordered it at a fancy restaurant, but you can take pride in knowing that you made it yourself, and didn’t spend your entire day in the kitchen. This meal produces maximum results with minimal effort.

The other thing I do on date night is that I plate the food for each of us as if we were getting it served to us from a restaurant. So, instead of seeing the dirty serving dishes sitting between me and my husband (which only leads me to thinking about having to wash them), I can just look across the table and see only food, wine, and my husband. The only thing left to do is to simply enjoy my lovely evening (and dinner!) with the hubby. I paired this with rosemary potato wedges and roasted carrots.

Leave the dishes in the sink. Nothing kills the ‘Date Night’ vibe like being up to your elbows in dirty dishes and soapy water, especially after a glass of wine (or two!). They won’t go anywhere. One night of romance is worth a few dirty dishes in the morning.

Trust me.


Rack of Lamb in Red Wine Sauce
From Online Source

Ingredients:
2 racks of lamb
salt and pepper
1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons olive oil

Sauce
1/4 cup finely chopped onion or shallot
1 cup dry red wine, Pinot Noir is very good
1 teaspoon minced rosemary leaves
1/2 teaspoon minced thyme leaves
1 teaspoon chopped chives
1 cup beef broth
1 to 2 tablespoons butter
salt and pepper, to taste

Preparation:
Heat oven to 400°.
Sprinkle lamb with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place racks of lamb in skillet, meaty side down, until nicely seared. Turn to brown bottoms, letting the racks support each other. Transfer to a foil-lined roasting pan. Place pan in oven; roast for about 20 to 30 minutes.
In the same skillet, sauté onions until tender. Add wine and herbs; simmer briskly until the wine has boiled down to a syrup. Add broth and continue to simmer until reduced to about 3/4 cup. Add the butter; stir. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve sauce with the lamb. Makes 3/4 cup.
Cut lamb into portions and serve with the red wine sauce.

Serves 2 to 4, depending on the meat-eaters in your family

Ribs

While most Marylanders know that it’s not summer without Crab Feasts, I also think that barbecue and pit beef deserve their spot in the “It’s not summer until you have...” category. Crab Feasts and barbecue seem to accompany most of my favorite memories. Now living in the Midwest, Crab Feasts are few and far-between but barbecue... that’s one thing we do have.

Going to school in southwestern Virginia, ribs I remember going to some of my first college football games (when they were still in the Big East), and seeing the hard-core tailgaters with their smokers pulling behind their Winnebago as they drove into the parking lot to find their spots on game day. This was the first time I’d ever seen an entire pig in a smoker. While it was a little strange at first (I loved Wilbur from Charlotte’s Web!), I gladly got my spot in line to try some. Walking up, I grabbed a bun, and the guy literally grabbed a piece of meat, pulled it off, and stuck it on my bun. It practically shredded itself on my sandwich it was so tender.

Even our rehearsal dinner was catered by a local barbecue joint (if you’re in the area and want some delicious barbecue, look out for Andy Nelsons http://www.andynelsonsbbq.com/)

I have made shredded pork and chicken several times in the slow cooker, but had always been a little hesitant to make ribs. I think it was mainly because the time commitment for ribs is more than most other things I have tried. And while these baby back ribs did take seven-and-a-half hours in the oven, the only problem I had was smelling the ribs all day. I couldn’t figure out why I was so hungry the entire day, until I would walk upstairs and hit the smell of the ribs. I also had not thought about how I would prepare a few of the other dinner items needing an oven. With a little bit of thinking and a lot of help for our countertop toaster/convection oven, we easily rectified the problem.

The fact that there are no “after” pictures, while sad, is truly a testament to how delicious these ribs were (and how hungry we all were after smelling them cook for hours!).


Slow Barbecue Ribs
Adapted From: Use Real Butter

4-5 lb. rack of ribs (I used 2 full racks of baby back ribs)
dry rub – recipe below
1 1/3 cup random store-brand BBQ sauce like Masterpiece or Bullseye (something with molasses in it – a sweeter type)

Dry Rub

2 Tbsp cumin
2 Tbsp brown sugar
4 Tbsp paprika
2 Tbsp chili powder
2 tsp cayenne powder
2 tbsp salt
2 tbsp black pepper, ground
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder

Mix together.

Dry off the rack of ribs. This is personal preference, but I cut my racks into three sections – they’re easier to fit in my pans, and easier to pick up after cooking without breaking into bits.

Rub spices over all of the rack. Cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 24 hours, but at least 4 hours.

Preheat oven to 225F.

Place the rack in a large roasting pan lined with foil for ease of clean up.

Cover with foil. Bake the ribs for 8 hours (Mine baked for 7 1/4).

Remove from oven and set the ribs on a rack to let the excess fat drip off (to reduce the grease fire on the grill).

Heat the grill on high for ten minutes, then reduce heat to medium.

Place the ribs on the grill for 5 minutes, covered.

Flip the ribs and grill for another 5 minutes.

Flip again and brush the top side of the ribs with barbecue sauce and allow grilling for 5 minutes.

Flip one last time and brush the top side with more sauce.

Serve, preferably with a tub of Wet-Wipes.

Bao Buns

My first experience with dim sum was with my in-laws at a now-closed restaurant called Triple Crown Seafood. It was next to this great Chinese supermarket where we could stock up on everything we would need for my husband to cook all his specialties. It is so much fun to sit down at a table and have cart after cart filled with bamboo steamer baskets pass with every type of dim sum imaginable – bao buns, pork shu mai, even chicken feet. There are no menus, you simply order by sight and smell.

Dim sum is so dangerous for me – there are three to four dumplings in each steamer basket, and after a while, I always seem to lose track of how many steamer baskets have been cleared off of our table. I know I should stop eating because I’m getting full, but I can’t stop because the food is just so amazingly delicious. I really need to work on my willpower.

My favorite dim sum is a Bao Bun. The bun itself is very light, but has a slight chew to it. It encases a small portion of filling, most classically one using Chinese barbecue pork. But there is a restaurant in Chicago serving the classic Char Siu Bao as well as the buns filled with anything from curried chicken to coconut custard. And let me tell you, the coconut cream filling is killer.

At a Chinese supermarket downtown, I found an entire aisle dedicated to flour. Glutinous rice flour, bao flour, dumpling flour, all types. Because I couldn’t read the labels, I bought a flour that had a picture of the bao bun on front, hoping it would work for me. We had also picked up some barbecue pork on this trip, so I found a filling recipe that incorporated this.

Unfortunately for my bao, I think my yeast was dead since I didn’t get a nice, puffy bao. I was really disappointed, until my husband said two things. First, he told me I nailed the filling. That was encouraging. At least I have half of the recipe right. Second, he mentioned that even though it wasn’t a bao bun, it was still a delicious dumpling – the dough had more of a pot sticker consistency. Despite having dead yeast and not getting a good rise out of my dough, I still ended up with something delicious, and we ate every last one of them.

I can’t wait to try again, and this time I will make sure my yeast blooms before I throw it all in the pot. And if the buns still fail, at least I know whatever comes out will be delicious, despite not being what I had planned on.

My moral is even if things don’t go as planned, go with it. I was so sad that my dumplings didn’t turn out anything like I had expected that I completely ignored the fact that I had managed to make something tasty.

Even failures can be delicious.

I’ll share the recipe for the filling, since that was so good, but I’m going to wait until I have success in the bao department before sharing the dough recipe.


Char Siu Bao Filling
Adapted From: Char Siu Bao

Yields ~8 steamed pork buns.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoons oil
1 scallion, chopped fine
1 clove garlic, chopped fine
1/4 pound barbecued pork cut into small cubes
1 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 tablespoons oyster sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon cornstarch, dissolved in 2 teaspoons water or chicken stock

Heat 1 tablespoons oil in wok. Stir fry scallion and garlic 30 seconds. Add pork. Stir fry 1 minute. Add soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sugar.

Pour in dissolved cornstarch. Stir fry quickly until pork is glazed. Remove to bowl and allow to cool.

If you have dough you want to make into Bao Buns, continue on with the recipe.

On a floured board, knead dough 1 minute and roll into one long, sausage-like roll 2 inches in diameter.

Slice the roll crosswise into 1 inch pieces.

Flatten each piece with the palm of your hand and roll with rolling pin into 3 inch rounds.

Place 2 tablespoons of filling in center of each round.

Gather dough up around the filling by pleating along the edges.

Bring the pleats up and twist securely and firmly.

Place each bun on 2 inch square of aluminum foil on steamer tray. Cover with a towel. Let rise 1 hour, until dough springs back when touched with finger. Remove towel.

Steam over briskly boiling water 10 minutes.

May be prepared in advance. May be frozen. Thaw out in plastic bag and resteam 10 minutes.

Spicy Asian Burgers

As much as I love a good burger, sometimes the classic beef patty can use a little ‘pick me up.’ When I first thought of suggesting a burger with an Asian flair, I thought it was going to be a hard sell. Most of the time, when I want a burger, I want a burger. A juicy, quarter-pound of beef with Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper grilled over hot coals to perfection. To my surprise, however, the idea was well-received, and our burgers got a one way ticket to Asia.

I am familiar with cilantro, fresh ginger, lemon, soy sauce and sriracha being in some classically asian dishes, but I have to admit I scratched my head for a bit when I saw apple in the recipe. I did think for a short second that I’d omit it, because it seemed like such a strange addition to the burger. But, in a moment of culinary derring-do, I decided to go for it, and include the apple. What’s the worst that could happen? After all, it wouldn’t have been the first time a new recipe has landed us in a fast-food drive-through.

In the finished burger, the lemon, ginger and cilantro are the key players to its flavor. The apple didn't adversely affect the flavor as I was expecting and I feel like it is the reason we ended up with such an incredibly moist and tender burger.

One thing you need a warning about - these are delicate. There is no egg to serve as binder, and only a little bit of bread crumb. The original recipe instructed to cook the burgers in a heavy bottomed pan or cast iron skillet as a way to be a little more careful with the burger, I’m guessing. We chose to throw caution to the wind and grill ours. It takes a little bit of skill, and we still break one in half every once in a while, but it still tastes great, even if it’s in a couple of pieces.

The slaw which accompanies the burger couldn’t be easier. Considering how little effort is needed to make it, I’m definitely putting this in my arsenal for weeknight sides. I used my mandolin slicer to finely slice a half head of cabbage, and even that was too much for us. My picture does show the slaw on top of my burger, however, I decided to eat it as a side dish, as did my husband. I topped my burger with a little bit of fresh, chopped cilantro and a good slathering of sriracha.
Spicy Asian Burgers
Adapted from Once Upon a Plate

Important: At least an hour before planning to cook them make patties as directed and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, up to 8 hours. *

Ingredients:
6 oz lean ground pork, chicken or turkey
1 tablespoons Panko (dry Japanese bread crumbs)
1/2 small to medium size Granny Smith apple, peeled, and very finely diced or coarsely shredded
1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger root ~ do not substitute (omit if unavailable)
Pinch ground pepper
2 teaspoons hot chili sauce (Sriracha), more if you like spicy
1 garlic clove, finely minced
1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, and 1/2 teaspoon grated zest
2 teaspoon soy sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons scallions, thinly sliced (white and green parts)
2 tablespoons cilantro leaves (or flat leaf parsley), finely chopped


For the Slaw:
Mix together at the last minute while burgers cook as it quickly wilts)
2 cups finely shredded cabbage (lightly packed - less than half a head)
1 tablespoon cilantro leaves, chopped
1 tablespoon scallion (white and green parts), thinly sliced
2 to 3 teaspoons (or to taste) Sweet Chili Sauce

Optional Garnishes:
Additional Cilantro leaves
Chopped Cashews or Peanuts
Drizzles of dark, flavorful Sesame oil
Additional hot sauce, or sweet chili sauce

To make the patties:
Place the ground meat of choice in a medium mixing bowl. Add the remaining ingredients, mix thoroughly so ingredients are evenly distributed through the meat. Shape into two regular size burgers. Chill in refrigerator for at least 1 hour(up to 8 hours) This step is necessary to firm the patties so they hold their shape while cooking.

To cook:
Preheat a heavy frying pan (well seasoned cast iron works great) over medium heat until hot (or use your grill like we did, just be careful!). Add about 1 tablespoon vegetable oil. Add meat patties to hot oil (don't crowd). Cook for 6 to 7 minutes per side (depending upon how thick the burgers are), turning once, until meat is thoroughly cooked. Remove to a plate and allow to rest for 5 minutes; keep warm by tenting loosely with foil.

New Comfort Foods

I’ve been feeling sick the past few days. Just a head cold, but it has been really can really taking a toll. These are the days when I want to curl up on the couch, watch some TV and hopefully fall asleep for a couple of hours. I also feel bad because when I am under the weather, my appetite is the first thing to go, which means cooking a meal is not high on my priority list (though baking is another story). My list of comfort foods is the typical chicken soup, grilled cheese and tomato soup, and anything with chocolate (hey, there are antioxidants in chocolate, so it’s not all bad!) Thanks to my husband, who so graciously made dinner last night, I have a new one to add to the list: Napa soup.

This soup features a chicken bouillon based broth with cilantro and soy sauce pork balls, mung bean threads and chopped napa cabbage. He was able to whip up the whole meal in just over 20 minutes and was exactly what the doctor ordered. It’s comforting in the way chicken noodle soup is, but with a decidedly asian flair. And it’s light enough that you can eat a decent sized bowl without feeling overstuffed.

I’m feeling better already.

My husband doesn’t follow a recipe, he goes by taste. The preparation is simple enough. The following recipe is just a guide, as this recipe is mostly determined by taste.

Napa Soup
To make the Pork Balls:
6 oz Ground Pork
Cilantro
1 Tbsp Sugar
Pepper
1 tsp Fish Sauce
1 tsp Maggi
2 tsp White Soy Sauce
2 tsp Regular Soy Sauce

Take ground pork, a small handful of chopped cilantro, sugar soy sauces, fish sauce and maggi and mix until combined. Divide into small balls.

To make the soup:
Small Handful Mung Bean threads
1 cube Chicken Boullion
Pork Balls (see above)
5 leaves of Napa
3-4 c boiling water
pepper
Fish Sauce
Soy Sauce

Stir chicken bouillon into water and wait until dissolved. Add pork balls and bring back to boil. One pork balls float, add noodles, then napa. Season to taste using pepper, fish sauce and regular soy sauce.

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