#1 Rating - Colette's Meatloaf (it makes the BEST sandwich, too)

     Our quest for the “best” meatloaf may be over! We really liked the Glazed Meatloaf that I posted last fall. But when our nephew and his wife were here, Colette (West) was telling me that she will only eat one recipe and immediately texted her friend (Tracy Carbaugh) to send it.

Colette's Meatloaf on top of
cheesy orzo pasta, with peas and
 carrots.

     I made it yesterday – loved the taste, the texture and the ease of preparation! It has moved to the #1 slot on our meatloaf scorecard. But the real test -- it made a great sandwich. According to Barry, "This is the BEST meatloaf sandwich I've had for a long time!"

     Since I associate this recipe with niece Colette, I've assigned her name to it. Also, I was unsure about a couple of the ingredients so  have my take on them added in parenthesis.

Colette’s Meatloaf   1½ lbs. ground beef  (I used 85% lean) ½ cup cracker crumbs (I used Club® crackers – there are 4 “sleeves” per box; less than half of a “sleeve” made ½ cup of crumbs – they were crumbed in the food processor) 2 eggs beaten 1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce ¼ cup chopped onion ½ teaspoon sage (I used about 1 tsp. of finely chopped fresh) 1 teaspoon seasoned salt (I used garlic salt)             Sauce            Ingredients are ready to mix together. 3 tablespoons brown sugar 3 tablespoons ketchup ½ teaspoon mustard (I used the ground variety)             1.     Preheat oven to 400°. Spray or grease a loaf pan 2.     In a mixing bowl combine all the meatloaf ingredients – mix well but avoid overmixing as this can create a dense loaf. 3.     Shape mixture into a loaf (it will be quite moist) and place in prepared loaf pan. (I used our Perfect Meatloaf® pan.) 4.     Combine sauce ingredients and spread over the top of the meatloaf. Meatloaf is ready to go into the oven 5.     Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. 6.     Grip insert of Perfect Meatloaf® pan by handles. Lift meatloaf to platter or cutting board; tent with foil and let rest for 10 minutes before slicing. (Standing will help keep the meatloaf from breaking apart as it is sliced.

Sausage Stuffed Zucchini Boats . . . a vintage recipe

“From Fern’s Kitchen” is the recipe collection of Barry’s mom’s recipes that I compiled a couple of years ago. Unfortunately her recipe box has disappeared and so many of the recipes Fern made are missing. This was one of her summer favorites. She found it in Better Homes & Garden Cheese Cookbook. First published in 1966, this is now considered to be a vintage cookbook.

Sausage Stuffed Zucchini Boats     

Serves 4

4 medium zucchini (about 2 lb.) 

¼ lb. bulk pork sausage (or use turkey sausage)

¼ cup chopped onions

½ cup fine cracker crumbs

1 egg, slightly beaten

½ teaspoon MSG (monosodium glutamate)  I omit this and just add a little more salt  but only if needed

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon thyme

Dash each of garlic salt and pepper

½ cup Parmesan cheese, grated – divided use

1.     Cook whole zucchini in boiling salted water “till” barely tender, 7 to 10 minutes. (Or cook in microwave.)

2.     Cut in half lengthwise; scoop zucchini from shell and mash. 

3.     Cook sausage and onions; drain off excess fat; stir in mashed zucchini, cracker crumbs, egg, MSG, salt, thyme, garlic salt and pepper. Reserve 2 tablespoons of cheese and mix remaining cheese with sausage-zucchini mixture; spoon into zucchini shells and place in a shallow baking dish. Sprinkle with reserved 2 tablespoons of cheese. 

4.     Bake at 350° for 25 to 30 minutes.

Nutty Cracker Delights - Salty & Sweet

Needed a treat for an office party, so I made Twila Jackson’s Nutty Cracker Delights. These crispy, sweet yet salty, crackers are more like cookies and it’s hard to stop with one or two. That’s why I never make them unless they are to be shared with others (and it would be quite noticeable if the cookie tray was nearly empty when I arrived)!

     Twila shared this unusual recipe when I interviewed her for my newspaper column (Abilene Reflector-Chronicle, 2/23/10). This and more of her recipes are included in the annual Dickinson County “Home Cooking” cookbook sold at the Heritage Center. All proceeds from the booklets go to educational projects at the society; booklets may be purchased at the Dickinson County Historical Society, 412 S. Campbell Abilene, Ks. 67410;  Phone: 785-263-2681;  heritagecenterdk@sbcglobal.net  All editions of the booklet sell for $4.95 + tax; mail-order deliveries sell for $8.50. 

Nutty Cracker Delights

44 Club® crackers—I used one sleeve of crackers (46 per sleeve; 3 sleeves per box of crackers) Also tried the new multi-grain Club® crackers & they worked very well in this recipe – delicious!

½ cup butter (1 stick)

½ cup granulated sugar                                                                      

½ to 1 cup sliced almonds                 

1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Line jelly roll pan with foil. I used a “half” pan (13”x18”x1”); see layout below.

2. Place crackers on pan in a single layer with edges butted up against one another. 

3. Boil butter and sugar for 2 minutes. 

4. Stir butter, sugar, almonds and vanilla together and spread on crackers. (I used a large spoon to distribute dollops of the syrup mixture on  crackers; then spread it out with an offset spatula – seems kind of like a skimpy amount of syrup but just spread patiently! Not necessary to cover every piece of every cracker – the syrup spreads as it bakes)

5. Bake at 350° 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.

6. Cut crackers apart if necessary. Cool.