Pioneer Woman Meatloaf

I caught the first five minutes of a Pioneer Woman episode the other day. She was making an Italian version of her Favorite Meatloaf. I didn't even know she had a favorite meatloaf but that makes sense.

I was inspired. I had extra bread, eggs, parmesan cheese and bacon (yes, she wraps her meatloaf in bacon). So all I needed was meat. I will encourage you to look at her favorite meatloaf recipe because I didn't want to take photos of raw meat for you. I did cook it about 30 minutes longer than she did because I really didn't want the meat to be pink.

Ingredients:

Meatloaf:
1 cup Whole Milk
6 slices White Bread
2 pounds Ground Beef (I used ground beef and ground turkey)
1 cup (heaping) Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
1/4 teaspoon Seasoned Salt
3/4 teaspoons Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
1/3 cup Minced Flat-leaf Parsley
4 whole Eggs, Beaten
10 slices Thin/regular Bacon

Sauce:
1-1/2 cup Ketchup
1/3 cup Brown Sugar
1 teaspoon Dry Mustard
Tabasco To Taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Pour milk over the bread slices. Allow it to soak in for several minutes. Place the ground beef, milk-soaked bread, Parmesan, seasoned salt, salt, black pepper, and parsley in a large mixing bowl. Pour in beaten eggs.
With clean hands, mix the ingredients until well combined. Form loaf. Lay bacon slices over the top, tucking them underneath the meatloaf.
Make the sauce: add ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, and hot sauce in a mixing bowl. Stir together. Pour 1/3 of the mixture over the top of the bacon. Spread with a spoon.

Bake for 45 minutes, then pour another 1/3 of the sauce over the top. Bake for another 15 minutes. Slice and serve with remaining sauce.

Keith liked this recipe. I love Ree the Pioneer Woman but had a hard time falling in love with this meatloaf. So take it or leave it is my verdict.

Herb Gardening

I am letting my regular garden go dormant this year. As a result, I am hoping it yields better veggies next year. Last year we had lettuce, tomatoes, and radishes. The year before we had tomatoes, cantaloupe, and bell pepper. It is time to let the soil rest for a season.

In my potted barrels on the patio, I decided I could still do a little gardening while we let the garden area rest. Italian basil, sweet basil, flat-leaf parsley and cilantro are the plants of choice. I use herbs in lots of my cooking so this will be nice to just head outside and pick my own.

I'm 13 months old... and like to play in the dirt! 

365 Days

I had so much fun documenting Eva's first 365 days. But subconsciously think that immediately after she turned one I took a hiatus from the camera. 365 days is a serious commitment for daily use of a camera for documentation. I was camera-weary.

I have a friend who made her New Year's resolution this year to be joyful everyday and uses Instagram to post a photo of something she finds joy in each day. 365 days of joy.

Well, Miss Eva has certainly brought us 365 (and more) days of joy. I love creating Shutterfly albums each year so it was natural that I would use Shutterfly to keep the 365 Days of Eva.  Shutterfly photobooks always make me happy especially when they arrive at our house. I had a few glitches while ordering this time which means I won't have it in the flesh until May 20th.
Here is a preview that I wanted to share. It might take a minute to load. I hope it works.

Click here to view this photo book larger

Create your own custom photo books at Shutterfly.com.