Quaker Oats Meatloaf

This is a prizewinning meatloaf. Strangely enough, when you go to Quaker's website, they don't provide the recipe. (Unless I didn't look thoroughly enough.) Anyway, I'm not certain but I think I have an early childhood recollection of this meatloaf. My friend wasn't sure but she thought her parents used that recipe. I liked it very much. It was unlike any other meatloaf I had. It was really good. I started making meatloaves after I met Steve. It seemed like a nice down home meal that I thought he'd really enjoy. Though we both like trying new fancier foods, we mostly like a good down to earth, hearty meal. We joking call meals like this, Heartland representing middle america. I don't know. I guess it's silly. Anyway, this is the only recipe I've ever used for meatloaf. There's a lot of pre-made ingredients in this meal so don't cringe.

The meatloaf recipe is purty darn easy to follow. There are several wet and dry ingredients to add to ground beef. Tomato juice (we used tomato sauce - not the prepared kind), oats (5 minute cooking kind), an egg, chopped onion, s & p. See? Easy. Then you shape it into a loaf. It called for a loaf pan but we didn't have a good one so we just hand shaped a loaf and put it on a sheet pan. It worked just fine. So ya bake for an hour and that's it. Oh, I put ketchup (yes, ketchup) on top of the loaf before cooking. I do this for two reasons: I like ketchup and I once saw my neighbor, who used to tutor me, do it to hers. And I remembered that I really liked the smell of it. So on it goes. On the side, I served mashed potatoes (russet potatoes mixed with lotsa butter, a hint of milk, and a little cream cheese) and store brand french style canned green beans. Oh, and Steve almost freaked out cause I forgot about the gravy. Well, all we had was a little pouch of McCormick's powdered gravy so I made that.

The verdict. Steve loved it. He said it was delicioso! Tender, moist and yummy it was. A very satisfying meal. And yes, the ketchup crust added something nice to it. The mashed potatoes were a little on the lumpy side. Little lumps that I couldn't seem to mash out. But the flavor and overall consistency was good. A guest tried a little of it and loved it. The canned green beans. Ever since I was a kid, I liked canned green beans. I like em fresh too but there's something about the mushiness and semi-saltiness that I fantasize about often. I don't have it alot but I think about it alot. So there have it, take a little time to make something traditional and you get to Eat Something Good!

Quaker Oats Prizewinning Meatloaf Recipe:

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs lean ground beef
1 cup tomato juice
3/4 cup oats, uncooked (quick or old-fashioned)
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
Ketchup for top (optional)

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350F.
2. Combine all ingredients except ketchup. Mix lightly but thoroughly.
3. Press into an 8x4-inch loaf pan (or free form it and throw it onto sheet pan like we did.)
4. Spread some ketchup on top of it.
5. Bake 1 hour or until juices run clear
6. Drain (if in loaf pan) and let stand 5 minutes before serving.

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Sweet n' Tangy Pork Chops

I got this recipe from a fellow blogger. All I know is that her name is Mary. She often posts food centered blogs and her recipes always have an interesting name. So, this one appealed to me because they're pork chops and I liked the word 'tangy'. I have an obsession with needing to learn how to cook pork chops properly. So I force pork on Steve. I've had good pork chops in the past. All made by others - chefs & home cooks. I've experienced tender delicious chops so I know it's possible to make a regular pork chop into something fantastic.

The 1" chops I purchased were on sale and that made me happy. They came two in a package. They were also beautiful. Perfect looking center cut chops with the bone in. Nice pink color. Mary's recipe wasn't difficult to follow at all. The only real preparation involved the sauce. The ingredients are as follows: Tomato sauce (the kind in a can - not a prepared sauce), packed brown sugar (ours was hard as a rock and I couldn't incorporate it into the sauce so I used sugar in the raw), cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, celery salt (I used celery seed and added salt because I didn't have any celery salt), ground nutmeg (mine was freshly ground) and I'm assuming she meant black pepper. So I browned the chops on both sides and added the sauce and let it simmer for a bit. And that's it!

The result. *deep breath*. Okay, I don't want to criticize this recipe because I didn't follow it correctly. As you know now, I switched around a lot of ingredients. I also played around with the amount of sugar. I didn't (and still don't) know whether brown sugar is sweeter (or less sweet) than the sugar in the raw. So I totally blew that measurement. I used less but it wasn't enough. The sauce was really sweet or maybe it was supposed to be that sweet. I'm uncertain. Another concern was the celery salt. I've never used it before and therefore I don't really know how it tastes. As for Steve. I should start by saying that he doesn't love pork chops. He says they're too tough and chewy. He did, however, admit that my chops were better than they have been in the past. I thought the texture was pretty good. It's not tender like if you were eating a steak and I understand Steve's commentary. But I don't mind. I kinda like the texture. So for me, I pat myself on the back for not overcooking them. The sauce. I didn't love it. There wasn't that much tang but alot of sweet. It was reminiscent of a sweet n' sour sauce but with less sour. And every now and again, I'd hit a celery seed and wondered if it belonged there. It wasn't an undesirable taste but unexpected. On the side, I served Spanish rice. Camilla brand, I think. I messed up the rice. Steve's been on a mixed vegetable kick. You know, the very common carrots, peas & corn combination. Anyway, when we go to our salvadorean restaurant El Dorado (Brewster, NY) - they sometimes serve their rice with those veggies in it. Well, not only did I overcook the rice, I added too much of the vegetables. Steve ate his with butter and didn't complain. He was kind to me last night even though I knew I'd messed up dinner. I didn't put up a pic because the meal was a little cheesy looking. I want to thank Mary for giving me the opportunity to try her recipe. In the future, I'll be sure to stick to the recipe and not attempt to substitute which I believe is the whole reason why my dinner failed. Oh well. So today, it'll be my mission to Eat Something Good!

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Freschetta PizzAmore 10-Topping Supreme

We had an errand to run last evening and we stopped off for a quick slice of pizza in Yonkers, NY. I'd had the pizza before because Steve wanted me to try it. He thought it was pretty good. But when I had it, it was just okay. Last night, he took a piping hot, fresh pie out of the oven for us. I almost burnt my tongue. It was better this time than the last and I was better satisfied. Well, our appetite for pizza didn't end so when we got home, we threw in the Freschetta frozen pizza. It smelled pretty good as it was baking away on its exclusive tray that they claim bakes the crust evenly. Steve & I adore pizza. Neither of us could live without it.

This was our first time trying this variety of Freschetta pizza. I once rated the taste as being 7 out of 10 for one of the varieties I can't seem to remember. My least favorite frozen pizza so far is DiGiorno's. Anyway, here are the 10 toppings: Mozzarella, Parmesan, pepperoni, spicy sausage, bell peppers (green, yellow and red), roasted red onions, garlic and oregano. Phew. I don't think I've ever had a pizza with so many toppings. No, I definitely haven't. The crust was "interesting". It was supposed to rise as it baked. According to Steve, it did not rise. He did, however, confirm that the pizza was pre-sliced. Steve didn't like that. He's the pizza cooker and the cutter with his little pizza cutter that he's wanted for years.

The verdict. Steve thought it was alright. He ate 3/4 of it. I, however, found that there were too many peppers. Also, I didn't hate the taste of oregano in it - you know I don't love oregano in some Italian foods. Anyway, the rest of the toppings were sparse (the meats) and it didn't satisfy me. A word about the crust. I didn't like it. I'll tell you why. Despite there being no mention of cornmeal in the ingredients list, the crust had the texture of a pizza coated with cornmeal on the bottom. I'm not opposed to cornmeal like at Two Boots Pizza in NYC (East Village). I really enjoy their pizza. But on this frozen pizza, the effect of the cornmeal-like texture was not pleasing to me. The outer crust was no better. More of that weird texture. The sauce wasn't outstanding. Again, the peppers and oregano altered the taste a little . The cheese was good. It was slightly above average for frozen ones. I won't be buying this variety of pizza anymore but I will continue to buy faves and try different ones. You can do the same and Eat Something Good!

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Ronzoni Spinach Fettuccine

I haven't had spinach fettuccine since last summer when Steve picked some up from Villarina's where they make their own pasta. Well, last night, we didn't have any fresh pasta. So, I did what I could for the dried pasta. I had completely forgotten that I bought it til I went rummaging through our food closet. Yes, it's a closet that Steve threw shelves into. We store all of our canned goods, dry goods, etc...in there. We haven't gone grocery shopping in two weeks so I had to apply a little ingenuity to the meal. After brainstorming the possibilities I came up with this.

To the spinach fettuccine, I added quartered black olives, roasted red peppers with the liquid, white wine, olive oil, thyme, s & p. And then I added a little crumbled goat cheese. As I mentioned previously, I'm really starting to enjoy goat cheese after years of ambivalence. Steve's glad cause he loves goat cheese.

The verdict. Steve loved it. He was uncertain of the black olive and goat cheese combination so he sample a little of it together and he was all, yes. Yes. The goat cheese made it a little creamy. The olives were canned and mild. They're not salty at all. The roasted red pepper gave it a little sweetness and the thyme accented the combination. It tasted almost like something Mediterranean. Yeah, we weren't minding dinner at all. Quite pleased actually cause it was all made out of odds and ends I had in the food closet and the fridge. So get creative, even on a limited budget, and Eat Something Good!

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Weight Watchers Chicken Parmesan

Once again, frozen entrees went on sale at my supermarket and I decided to buy some. Yesterday, I decided to have one for lunch. I had Weight Watchers Smart Ones - chicken parmesan. They describe it as a hearty dish of herb-seasoned, all-white meat chicken breast and tender pasta in a zesty marina sauce, topped with melted mozzarella and parmesan cheeses. It doesn't sound too bad, does it? Well, let me tell you. Okay, so I ate it. In fact, I ate the entire thing and let Sid lick it clean afterwards. The chicken was satisfactory and no more. I tolerated the texture because it wasn't as bad as can be. It was doable, it was tender. It was a weird kinda tender though. Like if you cooked it yourself, it probably would have a better texture. Anyway, the sauce. It wasn't as zesty as they claim. It was herb ee. And I didn't love the herb combination but with the non-descript sauce, it blended tolerably. Wow, I sure tolerated a lot of things about this meal. The pasta. Yes, it was tender as they described. But frozen entree spaghetti is usually tender/mushy but not as much as a Chef Boyardee product. (And I like some varieties like Beefaroni. Don't ask. I grew up eating a lot of trash.) Anyway, bottom line. I would not buy this product again even if it was on sale. I would, however, get a variation of the product. I'm interested in trying all frozen foods available on this earth. And that's all she said. Eat Something Good!

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Kyedong Chicken KFC

Kyedong Chicken is one of the main chains in the business of fried chicken. This place is all about chicken & beer. (And I didn't notice til later that those words are written right on the awning itself.)

It's fried chicken not like the KFC we know but the KFC that Koreans know about. My brother sent me a link about it once and supposedly it's very popular out in California. Steve & I found a couple of places in Queens NY and one in Manhattan and Valentine's Day seemed like a perfect day for us to try this stuff that we've only been fantasizing about.

For $18 we got a large order of wings. 15 pieces. (They actually gave us 16 but who's counting?) And they were good sized pieces. They came with shoestring french fries. (About the size of McDonald's.) We got half with soy sauce and half with hot sauce - the only two flavors available. We had a long wait with fair warning. It says right on the menu that it takes 20 minutes for a hot batch. And it's always a hot batch because this chicken doesn't sit under heat lamps. It comes to you fresh out of the fryer. Same goes for the french fries. As sides, they put out some unusual things. This place being Korean, I was not surprised that some form of kimchee type thing was put out. I think they were little cubes of turnip or radish. Unsure. I didn't taste one though I should have. They also gave you a little lettuce. I was unfamiliar with the type. I bypassed the non-meat things and went straight for the chicken.

The soy sauced wings were really good. As per Steve, they were damn good. I have no idea how they make them. I mean, they're fried. When does the sauce go on? And it couldn't have been just a few bastings after the fact. The wings were flavored too well. The soy flavor was there but it was light. It wasn't too salty or strong or too sweet like a teriyaki. And the fry job they did. Wow. You could really taste that it was chicken. And pretty good quality and well handled chicken. The meat was nice and white contrasting with the brown skin/crust. The skin was lightly crunchy and definitely crispy. There isn't a thick harsh batter as can be with some fried chickens. And despite being sauced, you didn't get it all over your fingers. The sauce is in the skin/crust. The hot sauced ones were more of the same in texture. But I didn't love it. The hot pepper (I'm assuming powder) that they used was dry tasting. I guess I don't love the flavor of red pepper or cayenne raw. I like it infused with some acid like in a good buffalo sauce. Oh, I have to say a word about beer as this is a place for beer & chicken. They sold two types of beer: Hite and Dark. You can order 500cc or 2000cc. Steve ordered the 500cc of dark beer. I drank at least 1/3 of it. And it was really good beer. It reminded me of a Sam Adams. It was complex, smooth and with very little bitterness. I failed to ask them what type of beer it was but I'm assuming it was some sort of korean beer. Good stuff! We had a great day out in Queens and I'm so glad we got the opportunity to Eat Something Good!

Kyedong Chicken
150-54 Northern Blvd.
Queens, NY 11354

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