A Meatloaf Extraordinaire

I have made so many really great meals lately, and haven't gotten them posted here. One of these was a meatloaf of all things. I am not over fond of meatloaf. Actually, I used to prefer it far more as cold leftovers on a meatloaf sandwich than hot the day it was made. 

One of my "beefs" (excuse the pun) about most meatloaves I have eaten elsewhere (not my own) is that raw onion goes in it, and even after the meatloaf is baked through, the onion is still raw enough to crunch, and so my stomach hurts for hours after. To remedy this, I always sauté my onion and garlic until they are truly caramelized and more flavorful. Problem solved. And complexity of flavor added!
 

Beef & Lentil Meatloaf Extraordinaire

There is a lot more to making a meatloaf tasty though, than just onion. Of late, I have been adding in a goodly amount of either shredded Parmesan or Romano cheese, as I do for meatballs as well. Most often I make meatballs with ground beef, and sometimes I add sausage. Not too long ago, I made some pork sausage meatballs, mixed half & half with cooked brown lentils, both to add fiber and to stretch the recipe. They were amazing! You can't really tell there are lentils (if you don't look closely) in the meatballs, and the other ingredients make the recipe taste delicious. I was relating this to my son, who is looking to improve his diet, and talking of adding lentils to meat dishes such as meatballs (or burgers or meatloaf), and my husband overheard the conversation. Later, he requested that I make something like that, with lentils added. I told him he had already been served this kind of mixture in past, quite a few times already! But I opted to do this again, and this time with a meatloaf. 

I have been gravitating more and more, when making meatloaves and meatballs, to some of the same ingredients, since they seem to really up the flavor factor by orders of magnitude. Some of these ingredients are as mentioned, such as a good amount of Parmesan or Romano cheese, and the sauteed, caramelized onions. I have at times added things like applesauce into the mix, and/or barbecue sauce. Sometimes I have switched out the Parmesan or Romano cheese for Gorgonzola (recipe here), which is exceptional! Sometimes I use quick cooking oatmeal as a binder, but I have used psyllium husks, flax and other things on occasion. 

So with no real plan in mind, I set about making a meatloaf with lentils. I cooked 1 cup of brown lentils for about 30 minutes, then drained and lightly mashed them, leaving a lot of them whole. I started adding things in and baked the meatloaves, which smelled heavenly. And my, these were just amazingly flavorful. Do not let the photos fool you into thinking this is another bland meatloaf. My husband loved them. And I will be making them again. And again! 

Beef & Lentil Meatloaf Extraordinaire 

Beef & Lentil Meatloaf Extraordinaire

Makes two (4 x 8-inch) meat loaves

1 cup brown lentils
3 cups water for cooking lentils
1 pound lean ground beef (or combination of beef and sausage meat) 
1 - 2 tablespoons olive oil, or oil of choice
1 onion, chopped
2 - 4 cloves fresh garlic, minced
4 large eggs 
½ cup barbecue sauce
1 cup freshly shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup 1-minute oats
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1½  - 2 teaspoons salt as desired
1½ teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, lightly minced

Set the lentils and water into a medium-large saucepan and bring to boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for about 30 minutes, until the lentils are tender. Drain, then allow to cool slightly. Mash with a potato masher, just to break up some of the lentils. Some should remain whole. Do not puree. You want texture.

Meanwhile, heat a skillet and add in the oil and the onions. Saute the onions, stirring often, until they are turning a caramel color. Add in the minced garlic and continue to cook, stirring, for about 3 more minutes. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place the ground beef in an large bowl, then add in the sauteed onion and garlic and all the remaining ingredients, including the cooked lentils. Thoroughly combine the mixture. Spray two loaf pans with cooking spray and divide the mixture between the pans evenly. Pat into a smooth rectangle and bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until internal temperature is at least 150 degrees. Wonderful served with mashed potatoes and green vegetable of choice.


My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Fourth of July Preparations

We are having guests for the 4th of July, and I am once again planning a few days of meals. In advance prep, I made some Balsamic Onions and Dried Cherries, a Spicy Rub for Chicken, a new Barbecue Sauce and some Pickled Mustard Seeds, just because I wanted to see what they are like. I am like that. I see a new thing I never heard of before and just have to try it. 

The Balsamic Onions and Dried Cherries is an expansion on an older recipe for 

Balsamic Pearl Onions. 

For the older version, simply omit the cherries and halve the amounts for the Balsamic vinegar, butter, oil, thyme. pepper and salt. The remainder is the same.

I used a both red and white pearl onions plus a bag of dried Montmorency cherries. The Balsamic Pearl Onions are an excellent condiment or side dish as onions are sweet when cooked anyway, and with the balsamic vinegar they are just fabulous. I just wanted a bit of color and an extra note, so I added in the cherries to absorb more of that wonderful glaze. I will be serving them with grilled steaks on Saturday. For dessert that day I am making Blackberry Cobbler with whipped cream or ice cream on the side.

Balsamic Onions and Dried Cherries

Balsamic Onions with Dried Cherries

Serves 6 to 8

2 pounds pearl onions
5 ounces dried Montmorency cherries
½ cup Balsamic vinegar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1½ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
¾ to 1 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees (375 on Convection Bake).

Prepare the pearl onions one of 2 ways: 1) Bring a pot of water to a boil and pour in the onions. boil for 1 minute and drain; rinse in cold water. Trim off root end and slip off outer skins. 2) trim root ends and peel off outer skins.

In a saucepan, combine the balsamic vinegar, butter, olive oil, thyme, pepper and salt. Heat just until the butter is completely melted. Combine this sauce with the prepared onions and the package of dried cherries and toss to combine. Pour into a wide casserole that will accommodate all the onions in one layer (9 x 13-inch pan should work). Bake the onions for 35 to 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes until cooked through. Serve warm.
For the 4th of July, I am planning to make grilled chicken. I mixed up both a spice rub to apply the night before and a new barbecue sauce recipe to apply when the grilling is almost done. I am planning to grill the chicken low and slow, with only one side of the grill heated to keep down the temperature and the chicken set over the unlit side of the grill. I am going to periodically brush the chicken with orange juice while it cooks to add another layer of flavor. To go with the chicken, my sister-in-law is bringing cole slaw and I am going to make a Ramen Noodle Salad. That recipe will come later on, once i make it and get some photos. I am going to make a Chocolate Mousse Pie in a Chocolate Pastry shell with Mascarpone Whipped Cream for dessert.

BBQ Chicken Rub

BBQ Chicken Rub

Enough for 2 chickens, cut up

2 tablespoons dried onion flakes
1½ teaspoons black peppercorns
1 tablespoon dried sage leaves, or <1 teaspoon ground
1 teaspoon dried basil leaves. or 1/2 teaspoon powdered
½ teaspoon dried rosemary leaves
¼ cup sugar
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
2 teaspoons salt
1½ teaspoons garlic powder
1½ teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon dried lemon peel
1 teaspoon ground sumac, optional
½ to 1 teaspoon chipotle powder

Combine the first 5 ingredients in a spice grinder or coffee grinder used only for spices and grind to a powder. Combine these with all the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Use this rub to coat two whole chickens, cut up the night before grilling. Set them in a single layer on a baking sheet and cover with foil. Refrigerate until 1 hour before grilling.

BBQ Dry Rub and Barbecue Sauce 2

Barbecue Sauce 2

Makes about 3 cups

2 cups ketchup
6 tablespoons fresh squeezed lime juice
2 tablespoons yellow mustard
2 tablespoons dried onion flakes/dried minced onion
2 teaspoons black peppercorns
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1½ teaspoons celery seeds
½ cup brown sugar
1½ teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons garlic powder
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon chipotle powder, optional

In a medium saucepan with lid, combine the first 3 ingredients. Separately, if using whole spices, place the onion flakes, black peppercorns, cumin and celery seeds into a spice grinder or coffee grinder used only for spices and grind to a powder. Add these along with the remaining dry spices to the saucepan and stir well. Bring the mixture to a boil. Be very careful, as the mixture will splatter alarmingly. Lower the temperature to a simmer, cover tightly with the lid and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, carefully lifting the lid about every 7 to 10 minutes to stir the mixture and prevent sticking to the pan. Once time is elapsed, remove from heat and remove the lid. Add in the butter, about 1/2 tablespoon at a time, stirring well until it is completely incorporated before adding in the next piece of butter, until all the butter has been added.

Use this barbecue sauce at the very end of grilling time to coat the chicken, and pass the rest at table.

Tomorrow night I am going to make Sloppy Joes and Mustard Potato Salad, as it will not matter if the Sloppy Joes are in the pan for a while and the Potato Salad will keep just fine in the fridge. The point being, I don't know what time my guests will be arriving. I am going to make Andes mint chip cookies as a dessert. Once our guests leave, I will be back with more of the recipes I am creating! Happy 4th of July!



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Updates & Recipes

My new Book

Starter just mixed: Day 1 and Day 2

Yesterday I wrote about my excitement with the new influx of cookbooks to my shelves, mainly about bread baking. I started out almost right away, making a "Seed Starter" from scratch. I am fishing entirely for wild yeasts to ferment my starter, so there is no commercial yeast added at all to give it a boost. The particular book I am following for this recipe (The Bread Baker's Apprentice by Peter Reinhart) calls for starting out using 1 cup of white rye flour mixed well with ¾ cup of water on the first day. He explains that there may be little, if any, activity in the first 24 hours. On the next day, we mix together 1 cup of bread flour with ½ cup of water and combine this with the mixture from day 1. There is still anticipated to be very little action in the starter after the second 24 hours (tomorrow morning). Tomorrow morning, I will discard half of the starter already made (the option being to share with a friend who is into this same thing, so they might pick up the ball and continue from this point). Again I will mix together 1 cup bread flour with ½ cup water and combine with the remaining starter. It is anticipated that this time there will be a bit of fermentation taking place. I will keep tabs on that. On Day 4 it will repeat again. For the time being, I am anxiously awaiting the wild yeasts who will presumably work their magic. For now it is a boring enterprise, but I have faith!

For now, I have a couple of recipes I wanted to post, but realized that in all the hullabaloo surrounding the arrival of 4 guys into the house for a week and the Wine Tasting Event that happened on April 12th, while I was cooking nonstop, I entirely forgot to get photos of some of my finished meals. I made a most excellent Chicken Curry one evening and Naan. Since I made the Naan breads while the guys were out fishing, I did take photos of the finished product. The Chicken Curry however, was completely gone before I realized I had no photos. I made buns and potato salad earlier in the day while they guys were fishing, so I got photos. The pulled pork was finished just as they arrived home for dinner. RI will post the recipe for the pulled pork as it turned out so very good.  My pork roast had been frozen. I left it in the fridge overnight, but it was still frozen in the center when I started the roast in the crock pot.

Pulled Pork BBQ on Homemade Buns

Pulled Pork

Serves about 8 or more

1 (4.5 pound) pork shoulder roast
1 large onion, quartered, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon coriander seed, crushed
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon cumin seed, crushed
1½ teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1 (12-ounce) bottle Guinness Stout or other liquid of choice
1½ to 2 cups Barbecue Sauce of choice

At around 8 or 9 AM, set the onions into a crock pot and set the pork roast on top of the onions. Combine all the spices together and sprinkle them over the meat. Pour on the entire Guinness Stout, cover the crock pot and set on High for 8 hours. If your roast is not frozen, you may set the crock pot on Low for the full time, or switch to Low about midway through the cooking time. I have a Crock Pot with a removable heavy crockery insert. If your slow cooker is thin walled, you may need to adjust cooking time.

Once the meat is cooked through and falling-apart-tender, remove the meat from the pot and set on a plate to cool slightly. If the remaining liquid in the crock pot is more than 1 cup, pour the liquid into a saucepan and cook over medium high heat until reduced to about 1 cup of liquid. Add the barbecue sauce to the liquid and stir to combine. Set aside.

Using 2 forks, pull the pork apart into ragged shreds. Add the pork to the sauce in the pan and toss well to combine. Serve on buns with a side of Mustard Potato Salad and Coleslaw.

Basic Coleslaw

Basic Coleslaw

Makes about 6 - 8 servings

8 cups shredded cabbage
1 carrot, peeled, shredded
¾ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup vinegar
¼ cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
a few grinds good quality pepper

Place cabbage and carrot in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients and pour over cabbage, combining well.


If you love pasta salads, there is a recipe I made recently that is good without mayonnaise if preferred, although I do add a little for the creaminess it imparts. I do use Dijon Mustard in the salad. I note this because I have a sister who hates both mayo and mustard. For anyone out there with this same dilemma, I have no idea what I would substitute for the mustard in this recipe. Maybe pickle relish? It would need something suitably piquant to compensate for the missing mustard flavor. 

My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Using up Leftovers Deliciously

The holidays are over, but some things still remain. Cookies - lots of them. I got crazy making cookies and now have a lot left. Thankfully I have a "sun room" which for all intents and purposes is now a walk in deep freezer. With temps hovering between -10 and -25 it is just plain frigid out there. Lucky for me, I have plenty of cold storage. But, cookies are not all that is left taking space in my actual refrigerator. 

My husband brought home some smoked pulled pork a week or more ago, and with everything else, it has mainly stayed in its bag. I ate a little once, but there were too many other things tempting. I also had pie dough in the freezer, left from Thanksgiving when I last made pies. I had made the pie dough using my even better Never Fail Pie Crust recipe with some new twists. I mentioned this in my blog post of December 11, 2013. I had been looking online for something, and as so often happens, stumbled upon an article in Food 52 about making pie dough in a slightly different way, and using vodka for part of the liquid called for. I have made pie dough twice now, using two different recipes and using these new updates and it works so wonderfully well. The pie dough itself is so lovely, with such great texture. The original idea came from Cooks Illustrated, but Food 52 is where I found it. Having made it for pies and for these empanadas, while the dough is great and the texture is perfect, I dislike how the dough seems to lose all definition once baked. If I crimp a pie, when it comes out of the oven, the lovely crimped edges are just a blurred suggestion. While these empanadas came out tasting great, they puffed so the fork-crimped edges lost most of the indent. The dough has no rising agent, but it seems to puff while baking. In certain applications this would be wonderful. For me, not really working much... Meanwhile, here is my Never Fail Pie Pastry recipe:

Never Fail Pie Pastry

Never Fail Pie Pastry for three 10-inch pies

Makes four single-crust 9-inch pie shells or two double-crust 9-inch pies, three single-crust 10-inch pies, or one double-crust 10-inch pie plus one single-crust 10-inch pie.

4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1¾ cups shortening or lard
1 egg, beaten
1 tablespoon vinegar
½ cup cold water

Combine dry ingredients, then cut in shortening or lard until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Combine egg, vinegar and water in a small bowl; stir into flour mixture. Do not over mix. Divide dough into 3 or 4 equal parts, shape each into a ball and wrap tightly. Chill.

Roll each portion to 1/8-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Place in a pie plate. Trim off any excess pastry along edges. Fold edges under and flute.

For a baked shell, prick bottom and sides with a fork and bake at 450 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. It is unnecessary to prick shell if it will be filled before baking.

NOTES: The pie dough may be stored in the refrigerator for up to one week, or in the freezer for longer periods. If freezing, divide the dough into 2 or 3 portions and freeze them separately in freezer zip-top bags.

As suggested above, lard is by far the best fat to use for this pie crust recipe, though shortening will work fine, and makes a very good crust. While butter will give lovely flavor, it makes the final product quite soft, with not much of the flakiness you will get when using one of the other two fats.  

Larger-sized Pork Barbecue Empanadas

Getting sidetracked. I do that when I get excited, and that pie dough innovation was exciting.

So, there was pie dough in the freezer and pulled pork in the fridge. I got the pie dough (enough for a single-crust 10-inch pie) from the freezer and set it on the counter to thaw. It took about an hour to become usable. I also had some of my Sweet Tangy BBQ Sauce in the fridge. All set. I have been wanting to make empanadas, or little hand pies; whatever you call them, it is a filling encased in dough. Pie dough is great for this. The pulled pork was in large chunks or longer strands, so I chopped it far smaller before proceeding so it would fit in the small pies. The meat had been laying flat (not bulging full) in a quart zip top bag. I didn't think of weighing or measuring to see how much was in the bag. I would estimate about 1½ to 1¾ cups, total. I mixed the meat with a little bit of the BBQ sauce, just to moisten. I did not want it running all over in the oven. 

Making Pork Barbecue Empanadas

I wanted to try a couple of sizes of little empanadas. I used my 3-inch biscuit cutter for the smaller ones, and used a small dessert bowl with an opening about 4¼-inches in diameter for larger ones. Either size would be wonderful for use as a party appetizer. The larger ones give a few bites worth while the little ones give a couple of bites (I ate two of the larger ones as my dinner last evening). I cut out 8 larger rounds and 8 smaller rounds. If I had made all large rounds it would likely have made about a dozen; if making all small rounds it would likely have made about 15 - 20. Part of this depends on how thinly you roll the pie dough. Some of the first ones I cut were too thick. 


I did have a small amount of the pork barbecue mixture leftover after filling all the dough. For the filling, about 2 - 3 tablespoons filling went in the large rounds and a scant 1 tablespoon in the small rounds. I moistened the edges of the dough, set the filling slightly to one side, then flipped the one edge over to meet the opposite side, making little half-moons, and pressed down the edges to seal. I also used a fork afterwards to press indentations in the edges and help with staying sealed. I brushed the tops of the empanadas with light cream, poked them with the tip of a sharp knife to allow steam to escape and baked them for about 18 minutes at 375 degrees. 

Brushed with light cream before baking

The wonderful thing about a recipe like this is that most anything can be used to fill the dough. Scrambled eggs and bacon would make great breakfast treats - the bread is built in! A mixture of leftovers with gravy to moisten, such as turkey or roast beef are great ideas. More savory mixtures such as pizza sauce with burger and/or pepperoni or cheese and mushroom mixtures would be great. There is really no end to the possibilities for these little things, and as I mentioned earlier - they are great for parties as they are self-contained. Just be sure to keep the filling a bit on the dry side to prevent leakage in the oven. Here is a recap of the recipe:

Smaller sized Pork Barbecue Empanadas

Pork Barbecue Empanadas

pie pastry for one (10-inch) pie
1½ to 1¾ cups leftover pulled pork
⅓ cup barbecue sauce (if the pork is without sauce)
milk or half and half for brushing

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Chop pork small for filling and mix with the BBQ sauce; set aside. Roll out the pie pastry to about 1/8-inch thick. Cut into 3 or more inch diameter rounds. Place a small portion of pork onto one side. Moisten the edges of the dough and fold one side of the dough over and seal on the opposite side, pressing well with fingers. Use the tines of a fork to make a decorative pattern that helps ensure the packets stay closed while baking. Brush the tops with milk of half and half and poke holes in the tops with a knife to vent. Set the empanadas on a baking sheet and bake for about 18 to 20 minutes, until browned and bubbling.



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.