Author: Theresa

This week I want to title this entry, “To Onion or Not to Onion”.   It truly is the dilemma of the day, when I choose a new recipe and wonder what Terry will say about the onion taste or pieces he can see. I don’t want to alter recipes (much or at all), but I also do not want to alter the assessment of the dish (much or at all) either based on his dislike of onions. Some weeks he doesn’t even notice. Some he does.  This time I decided a slight modification was in order.

Later this week is my friend Esther’s birthday. In her honor, I decided to make one of the two recipes she gave me for Terry’s retirement gift. (Haha! See what I did there? This has most certainly been a retirement gift for Terry v. me. Even though I was the guest of honor.) It truly has been fun watching him each Monday. He came home around 7:30pm after driving the bus to games at Allen East. He said it smelled fantastic and  noted he was very hungry.  That made me wonder if ranking of each meatloaf can vary on hunger level. Does hunger make the meatloaf even better? If I served it at 5pm, would he like it as much? There is no way to ever account for that variable as our schedules around here are pretty fluid.

Back to the recipes. One recipe that Esther gave me is her personal favorite and the other one is from her son-in-law.  Esther even wrote “Esther’s Son-in-Law’s Recipe” on the card. I do have his name. It is Erick.  Esther told me that Erick recently noted his mom, who worked all day, likely made her meatloaf this way so it would be a quicker meal than standard meatloaf. That certainly has come up a few times with a few recipes. Meatloaf can take quite a bit of time to bake, but the alterations in mini loaves, a sheet pan and now patties can speed up the process.  Also, if you are an avid reader you may remember that Esther said in early December when we visited, she liked her son-in-law’s recipe a bit better than her own.  I have yet to make Esther’s meatloaf so we shall see how it goes later.

Meatloaf Patties

2 lb. ground beef (80%)
1 1/2 c. old fashioned oats
3/4 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
1 c. milk
1/4 c. finely chopped onion

Mix 6 ingredients above together well.
Preheat oven to 350° F.
Form into patties and place on parchment paper lined cookie sheet(s).

Now the topping!

1/3 c. ketchup
2 t. brown sugar
2 t. mustard
2 T. finely chopped onion

Mix well and spread a thin layer on uncooked patties.  Bake 35-45 minutes.

The alteration I made, was to leave out the additional 2T. of finely chopped onion in the topping. I did use the 1/4 c. chopped onion in the meatloaf base.   Also, it did not specify how many patties so I made the mixture into 8 patties and that fit on one extra large lined baking sheet with sides due to the juices. However, this one surprised me and did not have much liquid, grease or run off after baking.  As I pulled it out of the oven Terry said, “Look at those “burger balls’.  I stopped mid action and looked at him. What in the world?! They did rise up a bit more than I anticipated. It is easy to see in the two photos. The featured image is after baking and they are a bit round. Terry said, “What? It looks like a fantastic burger.”    The assessment carried through the meal. AND Terry never got out the ketchup and mustard to doctor the dish. You can see why. The topping had both ketchup and mustard in it.   Terry never noticed or commented on the onion and even now does not know it had some onion. Maybe the barometer is 1/4 cup finely chopped in a 2 lb. meatloaf.  In Week #2, I made a recipe that was very close to this one. LIKE VERY CLOSE. However, it called for much more onion, 2 eggs and a bit more oatmeal.  Since we have endless Mondays, I might try Karen’s Great Grandma’s again and see if it does better with less finely chopped onion. Not grated.

Terry did ask me a very good question as he noted the oats.  Why oats? He thinks it is only a filler to make the ground beef go further. I figure it helps it stay together too. However, is there a flavor boost from adding the oatmeal? He was from a large family and his mom’s recipe also calls for oatmeal so likely the ‘going further’ comes from that. My recipe does not have oatmeal.  The AI experts found that it acts as a binding ingredient, adds moisture and texture and can enhance the savory taste of the meatloaf with a little nutty taste from the oats. I never thought of oats as slightly nutty but why argue with AI.   Terry was impressed with this meatloaf and took the leftovers to work on Tuesday- as he always does.   He said he might put this between a bun.  Erick’s meatloaf got a solid 8.8.  I think the presentation bumps it up to one I would make again.

Last week I mentioned a new adventure for this summer that might give me more stories to tell. One day down and I have photos and a story!  I have become an official bird watcher for the Johnny Appleseed Metro Park District (JAMPD).  Volunteering for the parks is something that was on my short list for retirement. We love our Allen County Parks.  The employees do such a great job keeping them nice and there are continuous enhancements.  Even our kids in the big city love our parks and take advantage of them when home.  Officially, I am just monitoring 20 Bluebirds boxes at Ottawa Metro Park. Even though it has the most boxes, I run there at least once per week so it made sense to spread my wings. (Pun intended.)  I asked about sharing this park with someone else but it seems volunteers are low so I am sharing it with TERRY!  He just did not know he signed up to help me. Sometimes he can grumble about what I get us involved in, but this time he was really encouraging. He loves the outdoors.  I think secretly he hopes my communing with nature will benefit his love of the outdoors.

I had a brief tour with a park staff that is younger than both my children but he was very kind and encouraging. He gave me the ins and outs of Ottawa Metro and the duties. I was feeling pretty confident. Maybe not on the T 15 v. T20 drill bit I would need, but I know I can learn that. I then attended a meeting with a step by step PowerPoint and narrative by the staff.  About 1/2 way through…..my worst fear was realized. And those in the room might have thought I was kidding.  Landon said, and I quote “it can be very common to find a mouse in a box.”  I gasp and immediately texted Terry that I was going to say I can’t do this. He calmly replied and said this would be a great time for me to get over this fear.  After I told Landon about my mice issues, he changed his tune a bit and said, “it’s not all that common.”   I was not buying it. I am sure he thought I was a crazy person.   I then saw a documentation sheet up on the screen that listed mice were found at least twice in one box Heritage Park last summer.

Oh, man. I was in a real dilemma.  I promised our eldest grands, age 8 and 5 1/2 that when they came home the following weekend, from that big city, they could help us check the boxes for the first time. I could not break their hearts. I did not want to ditch the parks when they need help.   So I forged ahead. Bought myself some supplies- big heavy gloves for moving out mice, an electric screwdriver and a box of T20s so all the boxes have the same screw.  It was a pain to change drill bits with all the stuff in my hands and the grasses they get lost in below.    Here is a true confession. Before I actually said yes to this adventure, I thought I would just look for bluebirds around the boxes and such when I was running.   I had no idea I needed tools and then was solely responsible for keeping out critters.  The PowerPoint and Landon did a great job of making me feel sorry for the poor little Bluebirds with all the predators. I was a social worker. I can get on board with any project for the less fortunate. A Bluebird is at a big disadvantage (I think).

Saturday morning we set out with two grandsons and a bag of stuff. Second house, we find a dead bird. I am sure I screamed. I was not expecting that. Terry teased me it was a dead mouse. We did not know what type of bird so I took a photo for Landon. He is really going to hate hearing from me by August 31. Next set of 4 we found a beautiful Bluebird nest with 4 eggs. Everett was thrilled. That made the whole day worth it.  The photo below is Everett showing off the eggs. I am sure he is going to ask for status updates weekly.  We carried on. From here on out, boxes were empty or had the starts of nests by either Tree Swallows or Bluebirds. Everett was hoping to find trash in one from a House Sparrow, but no such luck.  (Don’t I sound like I know what I am talking about? haha)

The boys started to get a bit bored with 20 boxes and Papa & Nini on a mission.  They are older so watching them every minute is not “often” needed.  About 5 minutes after they wandered off, we hear Everett yell. Off goes Terry. Everett is just watching this whole thing transpire and now Peter is caught up on the top of the fence around the Ottawa Metro pond.  Peter knows no boundaries that are not optional.  He is fearless.  Tore his very nice black sweats. Terry then had to climb up to get him unstuck.  I know. I know. We should have been watching, but there are 12 boxes on the last stop to finish for this week and the numbers on the boxes were confusing me. The picture below is worth a thousand words.  And it is only Week #1 of Bluebird Monitoring. I wonder if I will have enough material as I do for Week #24 of Meatloaf Monday. Time will tell.  Kudos to the Park District for all they do for us big humans and little tiny birds.  And for fences with curious kids.

We are back on track trying a new recipe for Mr. Schnipke. This week I decided to challenge myself. I was looking through the recipes on Sunday afternoon and pulled one from my friend, Jana.  Jana has been mentioned many times during the chronicling of Meatloaf Mondays due to her excellent cooking skills and for various other reasons. Since I was going to a concert later that evening with Jana and another friend, I thought this is perfect timing.  I just knew her recipe would not be specific enough for my needs. Jana says often she doesn’t really use recipes. I knew I could ask all my questions on the way to Columbus. And I really needed to!  Jana’s recipe is used in the feature photo. As you can see there are at least three ingredients with no measurements and then there were two items I have never used before.  I needed more details.

The conversation went a little like this. ‘Start with 1/2 cup of breadcrumbs and then add more if needed. How much more? Maybe another 1/2 cup.  How much Ketchup? Try a 1/4 of a cup in the meatloaf and then a use 1/4 cup as the topping.  How much dry mustard? I don’t know (pause) maybe 1-2 teaspoons.”  This was not specific enough but I gave up at this point. I will just do my best- or worst.

Now it’s Monday. I had to text Jana several times. First, from the grocery store to make sure I had the beef bouillon and onion soup mix correct. (Since Barb’s meatloaf in Week #18 it is better to double check!)  Then I had to ask during the mixing process, how many beef bouillon cubes. Jana said one because she forgot to tell me to use 3-4 splashes of Worcestershire Sauce. Good thing I have that on hand from another Meatloaf Monday. Jana is like a brilliant kid that just does not understand why the dumb kid in her class cannot figure out the ‘simple’ math problem! If you have no cooking prowess- at all, you need it all dummied down.  I forged ahead.  It was a little too wet with only a 1/2 cup of bread crumbs, so I added another 1/2 cup. Terry likes mustard and often puts it on his meatloaf so I went with 2 teaspoons of the dry mustard. I stayed with the 1/4 cup ketchup in the meatloaf and then 1/4 cup as the topping.

During baking, the juices overflowed a bit. Terry came in the house and said, “This is a first. I smelled this meatloaf out in the garage.”  He was mighty excited.  You would seriously think he never gets meatloaf.   Jana later told me she uses a baster to take off some of the juices if there is too much. I don’t even own a baster. Again, dumb math kid here.

Terry got ready to sit down and said, “It does not get any better than Meatloaf Monday!”  I think it can…filet Monday, dining out Monday, dinner on a beach Monday. I could go on and on with what could be better. Terry gave this meatloaf a very good review. He said it had very good flavor. A quote “this is very pleasing to the palate.”  He guessed wrong that he saw onion in it, but it was the onion soup. He added his own mustard. I added salt to mine. I circled back around to Jana and of course, she said, “Oh yes, I add salt.”   I am not quite sure yet how this meatloaf, under my care, ranked a 9.0.  There is a good chance if Jana made it, the score would sky rocket.

One other funny thing, Jana’s score was the very same as one other. It just happened to be her sister’s meatloaf in Week #9.  That is quite interesting because I remember Jana saying that she liked her sister’s meatloaf better than her own. 🙂 Also, in reviewing their recipes they both used the Lipton Onion Soup Mix instead of real onions. I believe these are the only two recipes to date that have used that product.

I have one other thing to close out this week. I really should start a new category for my stupid accidents.  I was putting away the groceries and I did this…

I am not even sure how. I turned around and my jacket must have caught the edge of the carton. The eggs flew to the floor.  I was only able to save 4. This accident caused me $3.66 and a ton of paper towels. In 23 weeks this is my third installment in “Theresa’s Klutzy Moments”.

Whew! This has been one busy week so here I am, on April 5,  trying to write up “Meatloaf Monday” for the fifth Monday in March.  This week was interesting- busy, very busy. I have really tried not to say that since I retired as nothing can be that busy again. Right? I sure hope!

First, I had a huge project to finish up by a deadline and there were also several meetings, which is now rather rare for me.  Then I got to play driver’s ed “instructor” for my niece and help out with some funeral home boards. Plus two visits to funeral homes this week.  Add to that the typical, and here I am.  Of the meetings though, I have to say the most interesting, I will share about later in a blog.  As I wondered if I was  taking on too much, Terry reminded me this new venture was something I had talked about doing the past 2 years so I need to give it a shot.  I can always cut back, right? Saying no, or not jumping into something new, has always been tough for me. I like to help.  When Morgan ([email protected]) helped me set up this website she told me I needed to use the feature that ‘categorizes’ the posts. I told her I would not need that because I would not write about anything but meatloaf. Well, she was right. This new gig, might cause me to write.

On Sunday, I sort of ‘complained’ that I wanted to skip a Meatloaf Monday. I was kind of tired of being creative (if you call it that) and had no real motivation. You can see by the dry erase board that even Terry gave me permission.  However, this was all sort of my plan. Throw him off the trail and at the exact half way mark, toss in my personal meatloaf and see if truly it is a ’10’.  If you have read each week, you might remember that this whole project started because Terry said my meatloaf was a 10. I set out to prove him wrong. He set out to get 42+ weeks of his favorite dish on Mondays.  I will just say now. I WAS RIGHT. I WAS RIGHT. I WAS RIGHT!   Did you get that? I was right. My meatloaf is not a ’10’.

Here is the recipe for my simply titled and simple to make, Meatloaf. I have used this same one about 35 years the best I can tell.  I did not make it often when the kids were growing up, as neither B liked the mushy meat with stuff in it.  This is the recipe that has always been in my cookbook and I have made it once or more per year, the last 9-10 years.  I have no idea where I originally got it, but maybe someone will claim it as I type it here.

Meatloaf

1 lb ground beef
1 cup milk
1 T Worcestershire Sauce
1 t salt
1/4 t pepper
1/8 t garlic powder
1/2 cup bread crumbs

Mix all the ingredients and spoon into an ungreased loaf pan. Pour 1/2 cup of ketchup over the top. Bake 1 hour at 350°.

(By the way, I have not learned the keys to make the degree symbol. It was time!  In case you care alt + 0176)  Here is a picture before baking.

You can see by the ingredients and your knowledge to this point that it does not have things Terry does not like, onions. And has quite a bit of ketchup, which he does like. Bound to do well.

I had to put this in the oven and leave. I was meeting a dear friend for dinner that was not meatloaf. THANK GOODNESS!  Here is the following small text exchange.  I was at dinner and just laughed because I could almost hear him saying “It smells soooooo gooooood in here!” as he walked in. I had to send the first text because he thought I was taking a Monday off.  He got a surprise and the house smelled just like he likes it on a Monday evening. Strange man. 🙂

Anyhow, when I got home he said the following:

“Well, it was so good I almost ate the whole pan, but I saved some for lunch tomorrow.”

“It tasted a little like yours, but it was not as dense as the one you make.”

” I really liked this one. I give it a 9.4.”

That is now the third highest. So, was a I right?  It wasn’t a 10, but a 9.4 is darn close and he said it tasted a lot like mine. I still maintain that Week #5 is soooo much better! And his rankings would confirm that sentiment.

Here I am on April 5 rushing to type this to be gone most of the next two days. Then it is “Meatloaf Monday” all over again. The weeks sure fly by when you have ground beef helping you keep track.

The streak has been broken!  He has now given the same ranking to different recipes. We are at the halfway mark of this quest to find the perfect recipe for the perfect husband. He  truly was not keeping track to this point.  And boy, did this week rank highly.  “This recipe is the one we have always made” according to my friend, Chris.  I was so shocked to see it was even easier than last week with 4 ingredients combined and then only ketchup on the top.  No brown sugar. The new ingredient this week was A1 Steak Sauce.  Right from the start, Terry said “this is very good.”  He said it was a bit crispy like Tim’s BBQ Meatloaf was in Week #15. He noted it does not have onion or green pepper. A plus for him.  We had a chat about this basically being like a very good hamburger with ketchup on top, especially since I used a 90/10 ground sirloin for the meat this week.  He gave this very quick and simple recipe a 9.1.   That ties the one in Week #7 by Renee called, Frosted Meatloaf.

Here is a true confession.  After hearing the ingredients, Terry said to me, “Wow, and I don’t like A1”. WHAT? I do not eat a steak without it and yet he tells me he has never ever liked A1 and does not use it. At home, I knew he would always choose Heinz 57, but I did not know when eating out or at our gourmet filet Christmas dinner he would not resort to A1.   I am almost embarrassed that he had such a strong reaction by saying “I do not like it AT ALL.”  And I did not know.  Terry let me off the hook a bit by saying he does not order steak at restaurants very often. That is very true. Funny thing, he liked it in this meatloaf well enough. 🙂 1 tsp is not very much to ‘detest’ or ‘hate’ or ‘abhor’.  Whatever words fit.

Classic Meatloaf

1 lb ground beef
1 sleeve of Ritz’s crackers, finely crushed
1 egg
1 tsp of A1 steak sauce

Preheat oven to 360 degrees. Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Place mixture in loaf pan or another pan and shape into a loaf. Top with ketchup as desired. ( I used about 1/4 cup.)  Bake for 50-55 minutes or until internal temperature is 165 degrees.

Way to go Chris. This one certainly makes the cut as it was a quick meal getting a high mark. Some of the other high scores took longer to make or had to bake 2-3 hours.  This was easily finished at 50 minutes.  I have to add, completely by accident, this was the third week in a row for a Chris- Chris Schnipke, Chris Shepherd and Chris Calvelage. If I have more Chris’ in the pile, I might have to keep that streak alive a bit longer.

Well, since this was a quick meal and post, here is a bonus recipe.  We have been trying to eat a bit healthier and cutting out sweets is a big part of that; however, it is tough on the guy who really likes dessert.  Tonight, I made these. Only 3 ingredients and 1 WW point each.  Lemon cake mix, 12 ounces of Sprite Zero and Blueberries. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes depending on the size of the donut pan.  I made mini donuts so it was 15 minutes even. Mr. Schnipke gave these a very high mark.

This week I have been feeling a bit under the weather with a very bad sinus infection. The old Theresa, would never have cooked dinner with my head ready to explode, but this new wife Theresa forged ahead. Like I am fighting a major battle or something, right?  It was just a sinus infection.  This is just Meatloaf Monday for goodness sakes; however,  promise is a promise so I could not let my dear starving husband down.

Due to all of that, I needed a quick and simple recipe so I chose one that fit both those criteria.  Seriously, this one is a quick dinner on the table with most ingredients you would have on hand at any time.   Prep time was under 15 minutes and bake time was right at 30 minutes. There was no new ingredient this week. The way it is presented in 8 mini loaves, likely adds to how fast it baked. Chris Shepherd wrote a lovely note, on this recipe that originated from Taste of Home, saying “this really is the meat loaf recipe we always use!”  I definitely understand why. I did not ask Chris, or her husband Curtis, if the ‘we’ in the note meant Curtis actually makes it? Or does Chris do almost all the cooking? I will have to circle back around to them and ask that very important marital bliss question. Who does the cooking in most families my age? Or the next generation? Does it depend on the work schedule of one over the other? Or do they not cook much like the Schnipkes? I will say, I made two other meals this past week. 3 in one week is record for me.   I have this friend recovering from surgery she had last week.  She is the head chef in her home and 5 days after surgery she told she has back in the kitchen. That is some serious dedication to the art of cooking. Or hunger. Or doesn’t want said hubby to ride the struggle bus any longer.

Back to Week #20 and Shepherd’s go-to meatloaf. Terry keyed into the sweetness of the sauce and a random egg shell piece, almost immediately. How, out of 8 loaves, does he choose the random one with a tiny piece of egg shell? I did fumble with the egg cracking this time, but with the price of eggs, I was bound to salvage it. That is 50 cents for just one egg!  I guess in all honesty then, the ever so tiny eggshell was a new ingredient.  Terry said it did not hinder the flavor or the experience.

I thought the topping for the 8 mini loaves had more brown sugar than any other recipe to date. In a quick look, only one other called for a 1/2 cup as this did. Many do not use brown sugar, but more typical has been 1-4 T.   The 1/2 cup of brown sugar for one pound of beef made it one of the sweetest.  Terry thought maybe it was a bit too sweet (which is shocking for him with the biggest sweet tooth of all).  He guessed maybe with last week’s meatloaf, it just hit him differently. He loved the texture and flavor. Even though the egg shell did not hinder his experience, the onion did.

He noted that onion is still not his favorite in any recipe. I decided to investigate how many recipes through Week #20 have had onion.  It was 14.  Some weeks he knows it, and some weeks he doesn’t. I suppose in a 1 pound meatloaf 1/2 cup of onion is a bit more noticeable. My personal recipe does not have any onion.  That means it is more typical for a meatloaf recipe to have onion than not. It is more likely for a meatloaf recipe to have ketchup, than not. His highest ranked meatloaves to date, Week #5 and Week # 15, had onion. Both those were the larger meatloaves and the highest rated at 9.9 said to ‘finely chop’.  I should definitely do that each week. This week I did not have the time and was not on my A game so the onion pieces might have been a little larger than other weeks.  Still with an eggshell and onion pieces too large, he gave this recipe a 7.4. Respectable for sure, and one I would make again due to ease. Sorry, Chris for the eggshell and not finely chopping the onion to the point it cannot be seen by the human eye!  Here is Chris’ recipe.

Cheesy Meatloaf

Ingredients:

1 large egg
3/4 cup whole milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup quick-cooking oats
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 pound of ground beef
2/3 cup ketchup
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons prepared mustard

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, whisk egg and milk. Stir in oats cheese, onion and salt. Crumble beef over the mixture and mix well. Shape into 8 loaves; place in a greased 9×13 baking dish.
2. In a small bowl, combine ketchup, brown sugar and mustard. Spoon over loaves.
3. Bake, uncovered at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until no pink remains and a thermometer reads 160 degrees.

At this point in writing my weekly post, I figured out this tidbit!  In researching how the cheese, brown sugar and onion stacked up to other recipes through Week #20, I discovered this is the exact same recipe as Week #11!  I had no idea. I bought the ingredients and made it, but did not notice.  In my defense was not titled the same, but with one tiny exception on cooking time, it is the same recipe. Here is how consistent Terry is with his preferences and ranking:  He gave the one on Week #11 a 7.2.  Only .2 off of this one.  I asked him again this week about never giving the same ranking. He said, “I give it what I give it. There is no big secret”.  Well, I have always said that Terry is very consistent. He gets up everyday at the same time and has the exact same routine- shower, shave, make coffee, read his bible/pray, lift weights in the basement, dress, brush teeth, pack lunch and leave. And go to bed at 10:00p.m.  He is very consistent with his meatloaf rankings too!

This is now a follow-up to Week #18.  I had a chat with Barb last evening about her recipe on Week #18 which was also her birthday.  She asked me if I used ‘Good Seasons Italian Dressing mix’ or another Italian Seasoning.  She then showed me the packet below. I did not use that! I have never even bought that product!   I used what is really Italian Seasoning. See below. After a bit, she admitted she did not like the meatloaf very much when we had it on March 3rd. Haha! Her recipe on her birthday and she did not like it.  She is one of my funniest friends. Not like Melissa R. funny, but blonde funny.  I know Barb will not be offended by that as I have my own blonde moments.  She said it did not taste like hers at all. She thought maybe it was too peppery.  I took a deep dive to compare the ingredients.

What does Good Seasons Italian Dressing Mix have in it? Ingredients: tablespoon garlic salt · tablespoon onion powder · tablespoon sugar · tablespoons oregano · teaspoon pepper · teaspoon basil · tablespoon parsley and other.

I will let you decide but 2 T. of the one I used might just have been the problem!!! Terry- now that Barb said she did not like it, want to re-score it?  I might have just gotten a new one for Week#43. I will make it the way Barb makes it.