Thursday, November 7, 2019

Company Meatloaf and Butternut Squash

November blogging has often included some posts on this blog.  So when my brother commented that a cross post on the family food blog was in order after my Company for Dinner post yesterday.  , I decided to follow his advice.  That meal worked out well and having the recipe/directions here is handy -- I've used this site for its recipes a number of times.  Reasonably enough.

Meatloaf:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix together, 1# or so of 85% ground beef or meat of your choice with
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup bread crumbs (I make my own in my smoothie maker/blender from a heel of good bread)
2 T ketchup
1 T Worcestershire sauce
1 T dried parsley
1/2 cup diced onion (I buy it diced -- lazy, I know)
1/4 cup milk
salt and pepper
garlic powder

Mix together really well.  Like squish it between your thumb and fingers until all of the breadcrumbs have completely disappeared.  (I think this is important to having a meatloaf that doesn't fall apart.)

Put mixture in a buttered loaf pan.  I used 1 T barbecue sauce as a glaze, smoothed thin with a spoon.

Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes, remove from oven and let it rest at least 10 minutes.  Transfer to a serving plate with a spatula or serve it from the pan.

It's even better the next day as leftovers or sandwiches.

Roasted Butternut Squash

Poke the squash with a meat fork in a half dozen places.  Microwave for 2 minutes, turn over, microwave for 2 more minutes.  Let it sit while you make the meatloaf. Once that's in the oven --

Cut off the ends of the squash, cut in half, cut the halves in half, remove seeds, cut into slices.  Put a sheet of aluminum foil on a cookie sheet, drizzle foil with olive oil, smear around.  Arrange the squash slices artistically, drizzle with more olive oil, smear around.  Salt and pepper.  Bake on the rack below the meatloaf -- they'll be done about the same time, the squash cooks faster, so it works out.


I cook differently now than I did just a few years ago -- for a bunch of reasons.  I may do this a few more times this month, just to archive some of those changes.