a peek inside the fishbowl

1 | Myra

September 20th, 2006 at 9:08 am

My sympathies. I am honestly feeling your pain since we appear to be living parallel financial lives equally full of “surprises”. Sigh.

And, don’t be afraid of meatloaf. Meatloaf, when made properly by hand (and with love) is delicious… especially with garlic smashed potatoes. When you’ve reached KD or HB Helper on the other hand…. well…. that’s another story.

2 | Kristina

September 20th, 2006 at 9:49 am

Oh NOOOO!!! What was wrong with it? Did the head gasket crack? I HATE spending money on the car. I know it’s a necessary evil but it’s the one thing that can totally turn me into a diabolical, raging, seething lunatic. My sympathies!

3 | Meatloaf Recipe

September 20th, 2006 at 9:58 am

Made my first meatloaf this summer when I was desperately seeking recipes to use the abundance of zucchini from our garden…

Turned out good and was enjoyed by all…

ZUCCHINI MEAT LOAF

2 lbs. ground beef
2 c. grated zucchini
1 c. bread (dry) crumbs
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. milk
1 beaten egg
1 sm. onion, finely chopped
1 beef bouillon dissolved in 1 tbsp. water

Combine all ingredients. Mix it thoroughly. Place in loaf pan; bake 350 degrees for 1 1/4 hours.

4 | andrea

September 20th, 2006 at 10:12 am

Kristina: What I didn’t scan was the 4.5 page invoice that we got back, itemizing all the stuff… among which: alternator, tires, ball joint, exhaust front pipe, transmission flush etc etc.

Buh-bye new dining room! My head is still spinning. This is so depressing.

5 | Jenn

September 20th, 2006 at 10:37 am

We had vehicle fixin’ to do this past weekend too. I cringed at the $700 dollars we had to spend out of the blue. Cars are no fun.

On another note…

Alton Brown’s Meatloaf Recipe

(His recipes ALWAYS work out really well – I usually use all ground sirloin-just tastes more flavourful and has a better texture than regular ground beef)

6 ounces garlic-flavored croutons
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 onion, roughly chopped
1 carrot, peeled and broken
3 whole cloves garlic
1/2 red bell pepper
18 ounces ground chuck
18 ounces ground sirloin
1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 egg

For the glaze:
1/2 cup catsup
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Dash Worcestershire sauce
Dash hot pepper sauce
1 tablespoon honey

Heat oven to 325 degrees F.
In a food processor bowl, combine croutons, black pepper, cayenne pepper, chili powder, and thyme. Pulse until the mixture is of a fine texture. Place this mixture into a large bowl. Combine the onion, carrot, garlic, and red pepper in the food processor bowl. Pulse until the mixture is finely chopped, but not pureed. Combine the vegetable mixture, ground sirloin, and ground chuck with the bread crumb mixture. Season the meat mixture with the kosher salt. Add the egg and combine thoroughly, but avoid squeezing the meat.

Pack this mixture into a 10-inch loaf pan to mold the shape of the meatloaf. Onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, turn the meatloaf out of the pan onto the center of the tray. Insert a temperature probe at a 45 degree angle into the top of the meatloaf. Avoid touching the bottom of the tray with the probe. Set the probe for 155 degrees.

Combine the catsup, cumin, Worcestershire sauce, hot pepper sauce and honey. Brush the glaze onto the meatloaf after it has been cooking for about 10 minutes.

6 | twinmomplusone

September 20th, 2006 at 12:12 pm

ouch, that’s a painful bill

we too learned our lesson the hard way about the engine light and not tight enough gas cap

can’t help you with meatloaf, every attempt I’ve ever made was pathetic

7 | Zhenia

September 20th, 2006 at 1:05 pm

My sympathies on the car bill. Ouch.

I hated meatloaf growing up but I think that I’d like it now. My dad has an especially good recipe: it uses beef AND pork (pig….goooood). If you’re interested, I can bug him for it.

8 | nancy

September 20th, 2006 at 1:07 pm

OH, being someone who ie meatloaf-a-phobic, hated it my entire life until….I was given a recipe that is truly delicious. I thought I had it on the computer, but can’t find it…will look further.

AND you have scared the poop outta me, out “maintenance” light has been flashing lately…yikes!

9 | nancy

September 20th, 2006 at 1:10 pm

Found it!

Best Ever MeatLoaf

2 eggs
2/3 cup milk
3 slices bread
1 onion chopped
1/2 cup shredded carrot
1 cup shredded cheddar
2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp mustard

Beat eggs in a large bowl — Add milk, salt, pepper and bread, beat until bread disintigrates. Add onion, carrot, cheese and beef. Mix well and pack into 9×5 loaf pan. Combing, ketchup, brown sugar and mustard and spread over top. Bake at 350 for 1 hour, let stand 10 minutes and serve

I always double the sauce recipe to save extra for dipping while eating. It’s all in the sauce baby!

10 | Sharon

September 20th, 2006 at 3:13 pm

Damn now I want meat loaf…off to thaw out some meat.

Sorry about the bill and the car. My van cost me a foturne all the freakin time…I’m going back to a disel Jetta when my van is run into the ground…I’m sure that will be in the next year or so.

(It ‘s paid for this week)

11 | Caroline

September 20th, 2006 at 3:59 pm

This so NOT my type of recipe but I cut it out of the paper about twenty years ago and taped it to a recipe card and used it for years because the kids liked it. But, we called it Roast Meat because Christopher (now 17) didn’t like the name Meatloaf.

ANN LANDERS’MEAT LOAF

2 pounds ground round
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups breadcrumbs
3/4 cup ketchup
1 teaspoon Accent (did not use)
1/2 cup warm water
1 package Lipton onion soup mix
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 strips bacon
1 can (8 ounces) Hunt’s tomato sauce

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix together all the ingredients except the bacon and tomato sauce. Blend thoroughly.
Put the mixture in an even layer in an oiled loaf pan. Smooth out the top with a spatula.
Lay the bacon down the length of the meat loaf and pour the tomato sauce over.
Bake in the middle level of the oven for 1 hour, until firm. Serves 6.
From “The Great American Food Almanac,” by Irena Chalmers with Milton Glaser and Friends. According to Irena Chalmers this recipe for Ann Landers’ meat loaf is reputedly the most frequently requested recipe in the English language.

12 | Chantal

September 20th, 2006 at 4:28 pm

We’ve done that before, with the gas cap. Just a few months ago, actually.

I was so spoiled with the warranty on my truck. I took it in for any little noise. Any little tick. Now I make sure the light is flashing and it’s falling apart before I take it in.

Ouch.

13 | Mark

September 20th, 2006 at 5:00 pm

I should add here that the engine light problem (seized valve) was only a $258 repair. The rest was just things that they found when I asked them to do a full inspection (since it was running poorly overall). Don’t want to scare anyone about the engine light thing. Yes, it was a big bill but truly it had about a dozen things done to it, including new front tires and strut, exhaust pipes redone, new alternator, etc. none of which was related to the engine light.

14 | BeachMama

September 20th, 2006 at 8:54 pm

We have a permanent light on in our car. It is hte gas cap thing too, we have changed it and now the sensor has to be changed. I think it will only cost about $40. Somehow your light cost a little more than mine, yikes. Sympathies to you.

15 | Ann D

September 20th, 2006 at 9:10 pm

Ouch! That is painful. My sympathies.

16 | Hillary

September 21st, 2006 at 4:23 am

Yeowch! Stupid money sucking machines…

Sorry, no meatloaf recipes for you, though it looks like you’ve got plenty!

17 | Barb

September 21st, 2006 at 8:00 am

I made meatloaf last night after reading this. I’d had a craving for it anyway so here is my recipe.

Enough ground beef to fill your loaf pan a pound maybe?
One egg
Half of a softball sized onion chopped fine
One Ziploc sandwich bag of crushed goldfish crackers
One can of Campbells Tomato Soup.

Mix everything together, but save half the soup to spread on top of the meatloaf so it doesn’t totally dry out while cooking.

I have one of those “double” pans that has holes in the bottom of the first one to let the grease drain to the other one.

I can’t wait for lunch to have a cold meatloaf sandwich!

Barb

18 | a peek inside the fish bowl

November 26th, 2006 at 12:49 pm

[…] Nancy’s meatloaf recipe (recipe listed in the comments in this post) […]