KITCHEN KREATION: Southern Meatloaf

Who doesn't love a delicious juicy slice of meatloaf? I mean, seriously, it's one of those memories of the ultimate comfort food to me. I don't know about you guys, but as a child, we didn't have meatloaf that often, so when we did it was kind of a treat. The leftovers the next day were always even better than the 1st night. I'm sitting here thinking about how good our meatloaf is going to be tomorrow after it's sat overnight in the fridge! Mmm mmm...

So anyway, for tonight's Sunday dinner, I made a Southern-style meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and peas and carrots. It was so good, I think I surprised myself with this one.  I'm pretty sure it's not all that healthy since I didn't really try to adapt any recipes or anything. I had to rely on my imagination and my childhood memories of watching my mama make her delicious meatloaf.  I have to admit, I think my version has her's beat.
Progress indeed...

INGREDIENTS
1 pound meatloaf mix (beef, veal, and pork - next time I will get 2 packages for 2 pounds)
1/2 cup bread crumbs (I used Progresso's Garlic & Herb - for 2 pounds of meat, use 1 cup)
1 egg - beaten (again, for 2 pounds, use 2 eggs)
1/2 cup onions - chopped
1/2 cup onion/bell pepper mix (found in the frozen vegetable section)- chopped
2 cloves garlic - minced
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp Italian seasoning

Meatloaf Glaze
1/2 cup ketchup
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar

DIRECTIONS

1.  I used the meatloaf mix found at my local grocer. It consists of ground beef, veal, and pork. It was a little shy of a pound of meat so next time I will use 2 packages and adjust my seasonings accordingly.

 

2.  Beat 1 egg in small bowl.

3.  Measure 1/2 cup bread crumbs.

4.  In medium-sized bowl, place meat, beaten egg, and bread crumbs.

5.  Add 1 Tbsp minced garlic (approximately 3 cloves).

6.  Add 1/2 cup chopped onion.

7.  Add 1/2 cup chopped onion/bell pepper mix.

8.  Add 1/2 tsp salt.

 

9.  Add 1 tsp black pepper.

 

10.  Add 1 tsp smoked paprika.

11.  Add 2 tsp Italian seasoning.



12. Add 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce.

13.  Mix well. Works best to use hands but I have issues with having raw meat under my nails (hence the use of gloves)...

14.  I lined my baking dish with foil (I think the size is a 9x5 loaf pan). 

This makes clean up a lot easier!

Pack the meat in the baking dish forming it into a loaf.

Now to make the glaze!

1.  Add 1/2 cup ketchup to small bowl. (Feel free to use tomato sauce, I just prefer my meatloaf glaze sweeter.)

2.  Add 2 Tbsp brown sugar.

3.  Add 1 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar. Mix well.

4.  Add half of glaze mixture to top of meat (approximately 3 Tbsp).

5.  Smooth over entire loaf, cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.

6.  After 30 minutes, remove foil cover, place remaining amount of glaze and bake uncovered for an additional 30 minutes.

7.  Let sit for 10 minutes, cut and enjoy!

KITCHEN KREATIONS: Sausage, Potato, and Spinach Breakfast Frittata

View from our front porch...

Welcome to Snowmageddon 2011... Weather forecast is predicting up to 22 inches!!!

View from our balcony...








The hubby and I are snowed in today. The forecast is predicting up to 22 inches of snow by noon tomorrow. Looks like I may get to have two days at home with my honey bunny. Yippee!!!
LOL!
So, in honor of our snow day together, we are making breakfast. I thought I would try making a frittata. I couldn't find a recipe that I liked, so hey, I made up my own. Let me know if you decide to make it and tell me what you think.


INGREDIENTS
8 eggs
1/2 pound breakfast sausage
1 frozen bag onions and bell peppers (as much as you like, to taste)
frozen breakfast potatoes
2 cups shredded cheese (divided)
10 oz can of cream of mushroom soup
10 oz amount of skim milk (use empty soup can to measure)
1/2 bag frozen chopped spinach
1 Tbsp olive oil
Pam butter flavored cooking spray

Seasonings (your preference-to taste)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Heat cooking oil in skillet and saute onions and bell peppers until tender.
3. Add breakfast sausage to skillet and cook until browned.
4. Drain grease from sausage and onion mixture and remove from heat.
5. Microwave spinach in container with 1-2 Tbsp water covered with saran wrap for 2-3 minutes.
6. Drain spinach well.
7. Mix eggs, cream of mushroom, and milk and whisk until combined.
8. Add seasonings to egg mixture if desired.
9. Add 3/4 cup of shredded cheese and mix well.
10. Spray casserole dish with Pam cooking spray.
11. Layer bottom of casserole dish with frozen breakfast potatoes.
12. Mix spinach with sausage mixture.
13. Layer spinach and sausage mixture over potatoes.
14. Pour egg and cheese mixture into casserole dish.
15. Bake in oven for 40-50 minutes or until casserole gets firm and inserted fork comes out clean.
16. Remove from oven.
17. Spread remaining 1/4 cup cheese over casserole, cover and let sit for 5 minutes.
18. Serve and enjoy.

KITCHEN KREATION: Sausage & Cheddar Pinwheels

Tonight, the hubby and I decided to have breakfast for dinner.

He often indulges me when I find a new recipe and tonight was no exception. I found this one on Pillsbury.com and it was originally titled Bacon & Cheddar Pinwheels which we have made before and they turned out great.

This time I decided to switch it up a bit and make it with the Jimmy Dean "All Natural" sausage. Hubby said that they turned out great. We scrambled up a couple of eggs, added a side of grapes, and a glass of orange juice and breakfast (for dinner) was served.

INGREDIENTS
1/2 package of Jimmy Dean sausage
1 package Pillsbury crescent rolls
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
4 Tbsp Philadelphia Sour Cream & Chives cream cheese
1/4 cup diced onions
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1 Tbsp olive oil

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Heat oil in skillet and saute onions and garlic until tender.
3. Add sausage and cook until brown. Stir to combine and drain well.
4. Unroll dough. Separate into 2 long rectangles. Press each into 12x4-inch rectangle.
5. Firmly press perforations to seal.
6. Evenly spread cream cheese over crescent dough.
7. Add sausage, onion, and garlic mixture, then add cheddar cheese.
8. Starting with one short side, roll up each rectangle; press edge to seal.
9. Wrap in saran wrap and place in freezer for 10-20 minutes.
10. With serrated knife, cut each roll into 1/2-3/4 inch slices.
11. Place cut side down on ungreased cookie sheet
12. Bake 13-15 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheet and enjoy.

KITCHEN KREATIONS: Crock Pot BBQ Pulled Pork sandwiches with Coleslaw

WEEKEND FEAST: Slow Cooker BBQ Pulled Pork sandwiches with coleslaw

So this morning I was messing around on foodnetwork.com's website and came across a Bobby Flay Throw Down video. He was making pulled pork sandwiches in this episode. Hmmm...
I've been on this mission for the hubby and I to start eating healthier by making more things at home and limiting ourselves to only going out to eat once per week. I watched the video and thought, I can do that. Then, I went to my 2nd favorite cooking site, Youtube, and typed in slow cooker pulled pork. You wouldn't believe the number of people with videos on how to cook pulled pork in a crock pot. So, I watched a few videos and dashed off to the grocery store. The results were amazing. Don't try this recipe if you are in a hurry or are starving. The pork cooks for hours on high in the crock pot, so we left to run some errands and when we got back, the house smelled heavenly. Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:
Slow cooker and disposable liner (works wonderfully!)
Cooking spray
Pork tenderloin
Meat rub seasoning (your preference - we used the Sweet and Spicy flavor)
1/2 cup apple juice
cole slaw package mix

Sauce: (I haven't learned how to make my own from scratch yet, so bear with me...)
2 bottles of BBQ sauce (again, the flavor is your preference - we used Sweet Baby Rays, Regular
& Honey BBQ)
2 Tbs brown sugar
1 Tbs ketchup
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp yellow mustard
2 Tbs olive oil
1 cap full of Apple Cider vinegar
1/2 cup water

1. Line slow cooker with disposable liner and spray with cooking spray.
2. Rinse pork tenderloin well with water and place in slow cooker
3. Apply rub seasonings to meat. Coat well.
4. Pour apple juice into crock pot around the meat being careful to not pour over the meat and rinse the seasoning off.
   
5. Cover and cook pork in crock pot on high for 5 hours.
6. Make cole slaw according to package directions. Refrigerate while meat is cooking.
   
7. (If applicable) After cooked, pull pork from bone. Discard bone.
8. Make BBQ sauce.
   

a. Mix all sauce ingredients in a pot and bring to boil.

b. Let boil for 2-3 minutes, then simmer on low heat until meat is ready.

9. Pour in BBQ sauce. Cook meat and sauce in crock pot for an additional hour to let flavors
integrate.
10. Make sandwich being sure to place coleslaw on top.

Enjoy!!!

Thanks for the inspiration, Bobby!!!

Midweek Feast: Taste of Asia night

So today I was sitting at work wondering what we were going to have for dinner. Since I've been on this Asian kick lately, I thought I would try to make some Chinese at home.
On tonight's menu: Pork lo mein with vegetables and egg rolls.
Both recipes came out absolutely delicious. The only problem is that since I am still recovering health wise from this summer, by the time I got done actually cooking, I was too tired to eat. The hubby assures me that everything came out great. He's actually (literally) in the kitchen getting seconds as I am typing this. LOL!!!
For the egg rolls, I combined a couple of recipes obtained on YouTube from different people that I subscribe to. So, here you go. I hope that you enjoy.

Pork Egg Rolls
Package of egg roll wrappers (found at your local grocery store in the produce section)
Package of coleslaw mix (I used 1/2 of the package since it was just the two of us)
Half pound of ground pork
1/2 cup thinly sliced onion
1 1/2 Tbs. stir fry oil
3/4 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 Tbs. soy sauce
1/4 cup Hoisin sauce
couple of dashes of cayenne pepper
couple of dashes of paprika
1 tsp cornstarch
2 Tbs. water

1. Mix together the coleslaw mix with stir fry oil, garlic salt, ground ginger, cayenne pepper, paprika and onions. Stir well.
2. Microwave mixture on high for 4-5 minutes. Stir again.
3. Add raw pork, Hoisin sauce and soy sauce to cabbage mixture. Stir well until everything is well integrated.
4. Mix the cornstarch and water in a small bowl until it forms a slurry with no lumps present. This acts as the "glue" to hold your egg roll together.
5. Wrap the egg roll.
- Place egg roll wrapper at diagonal with corner facing you.
- Place approximately 2 Tbs of pork/cabbage mixture on wrapper.
- Fold the bottom corner over mixture and roll tightly.
- Fold over the left, then the right corners.
- Wet your finger with the cornstarch "glue" and apply it to the top corner of the wrapper.
- Continue rolling the egg roll until complete.
- Set it aside with the egg roll sitting on the seam of the wrapper, sealed side down.
6. Place carefully in cooking oil and cook until golden brown. Oil should be 375-390 degrees.
7. After done, egg rolls will float to the top of the oil. Remove from the grease and set on a plate covered with paper towels to dry.
8. Enjoy!

For the pork lo mein, it came out really good, but it wasn't quite the taste that I was looking for. So, I will continue on my search for a fabulous lo mein recipe.

KITCHEN KREATIONS: Smothered pork chops with rice & gravy with southern-style green beans

Sunday Dinner:

So, for tonight's Sunday dinner, I didn't feel like trying any new recipes. I have been so worn out from being back at work on a full schedule, that I just wanted some old fashioned comfort food.
Tonight's menu consisted of smothered pork chops with rice & gravy and southern-style green beans. The hubby made us pina colada drinks to go with our meal.
Everything turned out delicious. As usual, when I started off cooking, I was incredibly hungry, but by the time the food was done, I could barely eat what was on my plate because I am so tired. So, I have my plate ready to eat in a little bit once I finish sipping on my pina colada and my stomach realizes that this rum does not make a meal. :-)
Well, I hope you enjoy the picture.

Live your life like it's golden and be blessed!