Meatloaf with Mashed potatoes.

The gelatin helps keep the meatloaf more moist and keeps it from splooging out grease onto the pan.

• 1 onion, diced fine
• 2 tsp garlic, minced fine
• 1 tsp dried or 2 tsp fresh thyme
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/4 c steak sauce or 3 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 c dried bread crumbs or crushed crackers
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 lb ground pork
• 1 tsp unflavored gelatin (optional)
• salt and freshly-ground pepper to taste

Topping:

• 1/4 c ketchup
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tbsp vinegar
• salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Sauté the onion until translucent and add the garlic and thyme right at the end and cook until fragrant. In a medium bowl, mix the egg, onion mixture,  and steak or Worcestershire sauce. Add the breadcrumbs, beef and pork,  gelatin salt and pepper and mix until just mixed. Don’t overmix or the meatloaf will get a funky texture.

Place the meat mixture on a cookie sheet and form into a rough square about 2 inches thick.

For the topping, mix all ingredients, and spread over the top of the meatloaf.

Bake for 1 hour.

• 4 chicken leg quarters (drumsticks and thighs attached)
• 1 bottle favorite barbecue sauce
• salt and pepper to taste
• hamburger buns or bread
• garnishes, such as pickles, onion, lettuce, cole slaw, etc.

Preheat oven to 350° F. Arrange chicken on a sheet pan, and add salt and pepper as desired. You can coat the chicken in sauce now, but if you do, I would add some foil so it doesn’t burn. I usually add the sauce at the end, though, because the chicken exudes quite a bit of liquid, and will make the whole thing runny.

Remove the chicken from the oven after about 2 hours, or when it is fall-off-the-bone tender. Let it sit until it is cool enough to handle and remove the meat from the bones and place it in a bowl. Reserve the bones and any leftover liquid for soup stock later.

Shred the chicken with your fingers or 2 forks. Add barbecue sauce to taste and serve.

For the broth:

• 1 turkey carcass with some meat still attached, quartered
• 2-3 quarts water
• Vegetable trimmings (carrot and potato peels, celery bottoms and leaves, onion ends and peels, etc.) or:
  • 1 onion chopped roughly
  • 2 celery stalks, broken in half or thirds
  • 2 carrots, chopped roughly
• 4-5 whole black peppercorns
• salt to taste

Add the turkey carcass, trimming (or vegetables), peppercorns and salt to the pot of water. You may also add any fat or gelatinous material to the pot and bring it to a boil. Boil for 1-2 hours until you have a rich, flavorful broth. Drain the broth through a fine-meshed strainer or a colander lined with cheesecloth or, if nothing else, just a colander. Pick all the meat from the bones and save them for the next part of the recipe. Make sure to let the bones cool first, though.

For the soup:

• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2-3 carrots, chopped
• 2-3 ribs of celery, chopped
• 1/4 c flour
• 2-3 medium potatoes, chopped
• 1 can of diced tomatoes, drained (or 1-2 medium tomatoes, diced)
• 1 can corn, drained (or 1 c fresh or frozen)
• 1 can peas, drained (or 1 c fresh or frozen)
• turkey broth (see above)
• 1 pint heavy cream
• 1 c milk
• turkey meat, picked from the bones, chopped
• 1 tbsp fresh or 1/2 tbsp dried rosemary
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

In the same pan you made the broth in, melt the butter. When the foaming subsides, add the onions, celery and carrots, and saute them until translucent. Add the flour and continue to saute until the flour turns brown, about 1 minute. Add the rest of the vegetables and broth and simmer until the potatoes are tender. Add the remaining ingredients and let it simmer a few minutes until it is thick.

• 1 lb of spaghetti
• 1 lb bratwurst, sliced into 1 inch pieces
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced or 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 can of diced tomatoes
• 1 c chicken broth
• 1 c heavy cream
• 1 packet of macaroni and cheese sauce mix
• Italian seasoning
• salt and black pepper to taste

Boil a pot of salted water and cook the spaghetti to al dente.  Sauté the brats, onion, pepper and garlic in olive oil. Add the tomatoes and chicken broth, and reduce by half. Add the cream and reduce again. Add the rest of the ingredients and serve over the spaghetti.

• 1 loaf Italian sourdough bread, sliced and toasted
• 1 package dehydrated sun-dried tomatoes
• pear juice (or any kind of juice, wine or water)
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2-3 tbsp olive oil
• salt and pepper
• sliced onion (we did it raw, but I would try sauteing or caramelizing as well)
• sliced roast beef (leave out if vegetarian)
• cottage cheese
• thyme, oregano, cumin

Rehydrate the tomatoes by adding enough pear juice (or whatever) to barely cover them and microwaving 30 seconds or until soft. Mince the tomatoes with the garlic and add this back to any remaining juice. Mix in the olive oil and salt and pepper. Garnish the toast with the tomato mixture and the remaining ingredients and enjoy!

As a side note, I would maybe put this back in the oven under the broiler for a minuted to melt and brown the cheese. Also, I would suggest trying a variation with prosciutto and mozzarella cheese for the roast beef and cottage cheese, if you happen to have any lying around.

Toss cukes and onion with salt in a colander and place over a bowl and let drain 20-30 minutes. You will get quite a bit of water out, at least a few tablespoons. DO NOT skip this step, or you will get a soggy salad.

Drain the water and move the salad to a clean bowl. Add remaining ingredients and toss to serve.

• 1 small onion, minced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 dried chipotle pepper, chopped
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 6 oz can tomato paste
• 1 12 oz can cola
• 1/2 c vinegar, white or apple cider
• 1 squirt yellow mustard
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• salt and black pepper to taste
• hot sauce to taste
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 tsp liquid smoke (optional)

Over a medium heat, sautee onion, garlic, and pepper in olive oil in a medium saucepan until onion is soft and translucent. Add tomato paste and sautee 2-3 minutes, mixing with vegetables. Add all but the  last 3 ingredients and stir to mix. Reduce heat to low and simmer 1 hour, stirring periodically. It should thicken quite a bit.

Add lemon juice and hot sauce to taste. Add liquid smoke, if desired.

The mixture will be chunky. If you want a smoother sauce whir in a food processor for a few seconds until smooth.

• 2 lbs ground beef
• 9 slices bacon
• 6 oz bleu cheese
• 1 onion, minced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 c toasted bread crumbs
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 milk
• 2-3 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1 T dijon mustard
• salt and pepper
• buns
• toppings (ketchup, mustard, onion, lettuce, more bleu cheese and bacon, etc.)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Sautee onion and garlic till translucent. Place in a large bowl. Fry bacon and add half of it to the bowl with the onions and garlic. Add the rest of the ingredients except buns and toppings and mix thoroughly.  Form into 6 large balls and place on a baking sheet.  Make a large dent in the balls and add bleu cheese and  remaining bacon to each, pinching ground beef around the hole to close. Flatten, taking care not to let any of the filling to get out.

Bake in the oven for 1 hour or until well done. Serve on buns with your choice of toppings.

Fine Dining for the Real World

Welcome to Simply Sunday. I am excited to lend some expertise, advice and wisdom. Please feel free to ask questions about your culinary conundrums, seek handy tips, comment or share your experience in the comment section. This first edition is at keldwud’s request, but this weekly spot will also feature my own recipes as well as hints for the begginer and so on. A bit of background: I started cooking for my family when I was 7. I learned quickly how to stretch a little food to feed a lot of people. After getting married, I quickly found a real and pure joy in preparing delicious meals for my husband. Soon word got out that I was a pretty decent cook; soon I found myself being asked to prepare things for church events, family events and so on. I am thrilled to be catering my first wedding in March! I watch a lot of Food Network, and have yet to back down from a challenge. I love food, in all its forms, from all over the world, and I’m so excited to be doing this. Enough about me, though. On to the food! ~Danielle

Corned Beef Hash

While this dish is most popular around St. Patrick’s Day, the truth is, it’s good any time of year! To be honest, corned beef is not something an Irishman during St. Paddy’s actual day would ever have heard of. Be creative. Try corned beef on sandwiches, chopped into a quesadilla, served finely sliced on an antipasti platter. But try this first. You will need:

• 1 corned beef roast from the market (2-4 pounds depending on how much you plan to eat before hashing it!)
• 1 small head of cabbage, cut into large chunks
• 1 onion, sliced
• Butter, a soft stick
• 1/3 c. water
• 2-3 cups hashbrowns OR
• 2-3 cups diced potatoes (see below)
• Eggs, two per person
• Salt and black pepper
• Cinnamon
• Slowcooker
• Large skillet
• Small skillet
• Food processor

This is a two step process, which is fine, because you’ll end up eating well twice! I may do another spot later on corning your beef from scratch, but for now we’ll just use a store-prepped hunk o’meat. Take the packet of spices that comes with the roast, and… toss it. Seriously. You don’t need ‘em. Rub your roast generously with black pepper and sprinkle with a hint of cinnamon. Coat the bottom of your slowcooker with butter. Add in a layer of onion, a layer of cabbage, repeat once more. Put your roast on top. Slowly pour water over all, cover, and DO NOT TOUCH for the next 6 hours. (Cook it on low). Remove your meat and let it sit there for 10-15 minutes. Don’t be swayed to slice it any sooner!! If you want yours with carrots and potatoes, that is fine, but be prepared to pick them out later. I would cook my potatoes separately, in slices, either boiled and then fried or just nuke them in the micro.

When you are done with this fine meal, put the leftovers in a container with NO juices included. Take out any carrots/taters you may have cooked it with and place in a different container. Put these in the fridge ’til you’re ready to make your hash!!

To make your hash, put your meat/cabbage/onion mixture in a food processor or a REALLY good blender. Pulverize until it’s almost but not quite the consistancy of ground meat. Take out your skillet and butter it well. Over medium heat, brown either what’s left of last night’s potatoes (diced) or hashbrowns (this will be enough for 2-3 people!). After your first side of potatoes have browned, dump your beef mix on top and then carefully flip it if you know how, or use a wide flat spatula to turn it. In the meantime, in a separate small skillet, fry your eggs, 2 per person. If you don’t know how to do this, don’t worry, there will be an article about eggs in the near future! After about 5 minutes on the second side, use your spatula or a big spoon to mix everything up. Put a serving on a plate, add the eggs on top, salt and pepper your eggs, and add Tabasco if you feel so inclined (which I do). Eat up!

P.S. YOU be the judge. If you have a lot more meat than potato, don’t use all the meat. Or use more potato. ~Danielle