Friday, June 17, 2011

More meat loaf? Of course!


Boarding House Meatloaf
Jack Daniels' The Spirit of Tennessee Cookbook Copyright 1988

1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 small onion, chopped
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
2 large eggs, beaten
3/4 cup uncooked regular oats
1/4 cup ketchup
1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Meat Loaf Sauce
3/4 cup catsup
2 tablespoons onions (chopped)
2 tablespoons green peppers (chopped)
1/4 cup brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients for meatloaf. Place into greased 9x3 inch loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour. Pour off juice and bake about 10 minutes longer. Place on platter and cover with sauce.

For sauce simmer all ingredients over low heat until onion and pepper are tender.
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I'm back on my meat loaf kick. I never get sick of it. I wasn't really looking for something really different this time. What I wanted was something a bit different but yet I didn't want to buy any extra ingredients. And, as I knew I was out of bread crumbs and had a surplus of oatmeal, I wanted one that used oatmeal as the filler.

This recipe met those criteria and I ended up enjoying it quite a bit even though I was almost expecting to be disappointed. It seemed too simple, too plain but it hit the spot. One thing I would change is that the 'sauce' would be much better used as a baked-on glaze (I've found the recipe printed that way online). Ketchup and brown sugar cooked together is just a bit too thick and sweet to be used as a sauce - it should stick to being a glaze. Also, next time I would add a little spice like nutmeg, cloves and/or dry mustard to give the glaze a little kick.

It was a bit crumbly in texture but I didn't mind that but be forewarned if you are looking for a meat loaf that behaves well when sliced. This might not be it.

I'll have to add this one to my meat loaf recipe round up.

This is a nice cookbook. It's not just recipes - there are lots of stories and information about the region of Tennessee where Jack Daniel's is produced. There are pictures of people and places. although no pictures of the recipes. It had a lot of great recipes, many that actually use Jack Daniel's but others are just recipes from that area.

I paid $2.97 in Goodwill for this book many months ago. Back then, that was a stretch for me, now I would be lucky to find a cookbook in Goodwill for $2.97. They have started pricing them ridiculously high. Perhaps the increase in cookbook sales since I started shopping there is what compelled them to increase the cookbook prices but I have become much pickier about what I buy there and I notice the cookbooks tend to pile up now.

9 comments:

Annie Jones said...

I love meatloaf! I was surprised to see there was no Jack Daniels' in the sauce. :)

The Cookbook Junkie said...

Like I said, this book does have plenty of recipes that use JD but the focus is really recipes of that region. Apparently there was a boarding house (Miss Bobo's?) that was very famous and around for a long time. Actually I think it still operates as a restaurant in that area.

That reminds me though - I have a recipe for a similar sauce in my Ugly Binder that I altered a bit and used whiskey in. I have to pull it out and blog about it - it was really good.

Tammy said...

This looks so yummy! Wish I could make it, but I'd have to eat it all!
Yum.

Wanda said...

Books have gone up at my Goodwill, too. :/ They used to be .99 for hard backs and .49 for paperbacks. Now they are $1.99 and .99. I haven't noticed or bought any cookbooks in ages, so I don't know if they are priced higher than regular books or not.

Anonymous said...

Going way back in your recipe file.....Yesterday I made the Salisbury Steaks with Rich Brown Gravy. The entree came to mind and I remembered you had posted that. We loved it, everyone from hubby to the youngest granddaughter. Next time I need to increase the recipe. Thanks, it's going in my permanent file.

Jan

Mrs. L said...

I too, thought there would have been some Jack in there somewhere. Looking forward to the recipe using whiskey!

Cooking Contests said...

It's so exciting to find this on your site. My in-laws are from Nashville, TN and this is the recipe I got from my mom-in-law. It's one of the staples in my book.

Rose said...

Sounds awesome!

Green Mountain Realty said...

Great recipe