Eggless meat loaf

Tomato Meat Loaf
The Congressional Club Cook Book Copyright 1976

2 ½ cups condensed tomato soup I just used one 10 oz can and that was enough
1 pound hamburger
½ cup cracker crumbs
1 small onion
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper

Mix ½ cup soup with other ingredients and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Use remaining soup as a topping to the meat loaf the last 13 minutes of baking time. I baked it in a loaf pan lined with parchment and poured the rest of the can of soup on it before baking. Then I chilled and grilled it.

Makes 8 servings.
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This picture probably won't appeal to most people. These pieces got a little dark in the Griddler but I'm my father's daughter and I actually like the burned bits so I didn't mind eating these. I didn't burn every piece. God forbid you give my older son anything with 'brown stuff' on it - even just the well-cooked outer edge of a pot roast. He doesn't like the stiffer texture I guess. He just started complaining about that lately. He does not take after his Pop Pop (who favors browned, crispy food.)

I love meat loaf as regular readers probably know. This was one of the simplest meat loaf recipes that I've tried but it was good. I like that it only used one pound of meat (so many meat loaf recipes ask for 1 1/2 or 2 pounds). I thought it was interesting that it was egg-free. That might be a problem serving it straight from the oven but after chilling this, it was easy to slice for the Griddler. It was nice and tender but held it's shape.

This is an interesting cookbook that was complied for the Bicentennial in 1976 (although many other editions before and after that have been published). The recipes are mostly old-fashioned family fare. I think the legislators (well, mainly their wives) who submitted recipes probably didn't want to seem too high-falutin' but that's just speculation on my part.

This is one of those cookbooks that appeals to me for unknown reasons. It's hardcover but very plain. No food photos or illustrations. I think it's the bit of historical appeal too. It was signed by one of the editors and I looked it up and she was the wife of a former Representative, Herman Schneebeli, who was from only about an hour away from here. My county was in his district. Not too coincidental I suppose considering I think I picked this book up at that flea market in Harrisburg, the state capital, in the same county.

I'm just not quite up to cooking par this week. I still have one day open that I haven't planned for. That is very unusual.

Question of the Day: Do you have any food texture quirks? My moods may change but I don't really avoid any particular food texture.