See? This is what happens when you finally get a day off and you end up watching too much Food Network! You end up with a dinner menu consisting of pancakes and meatloaf! (If they can do chicken and waffles, why not pancakes and meatloaf?) I was watching some show about diner cuisine, and I was subsequently possessed by the desire--no, the desperate need--for pancakes and a meatloaf sandwich! (Obviously, I am restricting my carbs. Tee hee.)
The pancakes were good, but were not from scratch (don't judge me!). They were made from a lovely organic buckwheat mix that I picked up somewhere on my travels. (I prefer edible souvenirs when I road trip...or cookbooks. But I digress...) However, please allow me a short discourse on meatloaf. Previous to this evening, I thought that I already had the very best meatloaf recipe in the whole world, given to me by my wonderful friend, Twonky Bellonkamy (aka Tony Bellomy). But recently, I was forwarded a meatloaf recipe from one of my PBGV acquaintances, highly recommended by another friend who deemed it a "killer meatloaf!" So I thought I'd give it a whirl. Well, bygum, I think our house meatloaf has been supplanted! This really was the best meatloaf I've ever had! I know meatloaf can be very subjective, so I guess I'll just say that it's exactly how I prefer my meatloaf to be. Tender and moist, but not falling apart, and flavorful without the spices and other additions overpowering the meat itself. To be fair, the recipe was VERY similar to my friend Tony's, with two notable changes. One is the omission of a topping. You know, that ketchup/brown sugar/worcestershire affair, which I enjoy, but don't really need--especially if my goal is a meatloaf sandwich. And then the one ingredient that sets this recipe apart is the inclusion of Bloody Mary mix (as opposed to ketchup or tomato soup or the like). Now, as I am not a drinker, I didn't have any Bloody Mary mix on hand, but I was able to locate a few recipes on the 'net that I integrated to create a tasty homemade version. It made about six cups of the stuff, so I froze the leftovers for future meatloaves--of which there will be MANY following my new favorite recipe! And here 'tis...
BLOODY MARY MEATLOAF
1 pound ground beef (sirloin, if you can swing it!)
½ pound Italian sausage (I like a garlicky version--and this is my addition, by the way, as I prefer a beef/sausage mix for my meatloaf. The original recipe called for one pound of beef only.)
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 green pepper, finely chopped (OPTIONAL, as I do NOT prefer it! But I did mince a few jalapeno slices and threw them in for good measure and a bit of a kick. Yum!)
1 cup quick oats (NOT instant!)
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
½-1 teaspoon granulated garlic (to your preference--"never too much garlic" is my motto)
1 egg
1 cup Bloody Mary Mix* (preferably, a spicyand/or beefy variety!)
Mix all ingredients together well by hand. Form an oblong-shaped loaf on a lined cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour.
*Spicy Beefamato-like Bloody Mary Mix
46 oz. tomato juice
8 oz. beef bouillon
½ teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons celery salt
½ teaspoon onion powder
juice of one lemon (or lime juice would be great, too!)
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons juice from jalapeno/nacho slices
3 tablespoons vinegar (I like apple cider vinegar, but white is fine)
2 tablespoons sugar
Tabasco to taste (several good glugs—don’t be timid!)
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