Do you like meatloaf? Remember the meatloaf your mom made with the ketchup on top? I always thought my mom’s meatloaf was dry. But I loved a meatloaf samich the next day on white bread with just some mayo. It is still one of my favorite samiches. Well the meatloaf I make is not like any meatloaf my mom ever made. My sister gave me this recipe years ago. Everyone I have ever made it for has gone nuts. In a good way. 🙂
It isn’t the least bit bready or dry. In fact it hardly stays together because it is so juicy and oozy goozy with cheese. Super easy too. I suppose if you want, you could use ground turkey. But I have never tried it that way. I’m sure it would work well though. What really makes this meatloaf unusual is the cheese. I cut it into cubes and mix it in with the rest of the ingredients. You poke it all in so you don’t see the cheese when you form it into your loaf. Then once cooked and sliced, the cheese is all oozing and melty. The next day you slice it, slightly pan fry it and put it on some of your favorite bread or a bun, FANTASTIC!! (Picture of the samich tomorrow)
 

The Best Meatloaf

1  1/2 lbs of ground beef
1 small onion, minced
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1  8oz block of Monterey jack cheese
1  pkg Lipton onion soup mix
small piece of bell pepper, minced (optional. I don’t use it because it makes me burp)
1  tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper

3 slices of bread
1 egg
enough milk to soak the bread in so its wet (approx. 1/4 cup)

Preheat your oven to 350. In a big ol bowl, break up your bread slices and add the milk and egg. Squish it all until it gets all mooshy (technical baking term). Add the ground beef, onion, cream of mushroom soup, garlic powder salt and pepper. Add the cubes of cheese. mix it all up without breaking the cheese cubes. Dump it in a 9 x 11 baking dish and form it into a loaf. Sprinkle half of the Lipton soup mix on top of the loaf. If you like things SALTY, use the whole packet. Place your pan in the oven for 1 hour….maybe an hour and 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let it set for about 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with mashed potatoes. So yummy.

Wacky is good…..everyone likes a little wacky. Especially when it’s in the form of cake!! Wacky Cake!! Otherwise known as Crazy Cake, Depression Cake. It’s my favorite chocolate cake ever. This is the most moist cake you will ever eat, seriously. I grew up on this cake. My mom made it all the time. It’s known as the Depression cake because back during the depression, ingredients were scarce…especially eggs. So the story goes anyway. Whatever! All that matters is that it is a great cake, easy mix in the baking pan….dairy free…egg free cake. Most people don’t even frost it. I don’t. It’s so moist that when you cut a piece and pick it up with your fingers, it’s all gooey and crumbs cling to your fingers. Yup, Yup……I can’t say enough about it….obviously. I’m rambling. I gave a couple slices to some coworkers at the office this morning and I heard some moaning going on. They love it too!!! So super simple. Make it today! OH, I made the non chocolate version the otber night and that was good too. 

Wacky Cake 

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup cocoa powder
6 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 cup water

Preheat oven to 350. In a square 8×8 baking dish, put all the dry ingredients. Add the oil, vinegar and the water. Stir it up, but don’t over mix. Everyone over mixes…….GEESH. don’t do it.
Bake for approx. 25 minutes or until you poke a toothpick in it and it comes out clean. Let it cool completely.

How easy is that!

So this yummy little morsel is a cross between a cake donut and a muffin. Great with a hot cup of coffee or tea. You can frost them with a lemon glaze like I did here, or a plain sugar glaze or a chocolate glaze, or rolled in cinnamon sugar like I did here. I mean, seriously…..the possibilities are endless! They are easy to just pop in your mouth and chomp, chomp. Ohhhhh, so good. I took them to the office today. They were quite a happy bunch of people. I like filling up a little white paper bag with these for a little gift with a coffee mug. I mean, who wouldn’t like to get that as a little gift!! Or take a plate into the office like I did. Your coworkers will be HAPPY!
Try these soon, they will be a hit….I promise.

Donut Muffins (Duffins)

It’s not a very good idea to roast chicken in a hot iron skillet when it’s almost 90 degrees out. But hey, I wanted chicken and I had a specific chicken dish in mind. So, I cranked up the AC and made my chicken. Stuffed, roasted chicken. Stuffed with a mixture of blue cheese salad dressing (also great with Ranch dressing), cream cheese and Cheddar cheese. I usually do this with chicken breasts, but since I prefer dark meat, I used a leg thigh quarter. It was a little hard to stuff……hahahaha, but hey, I managed. The filling was oozing out, all bubbly and hot. I love cooking in a cast iron skillet.  The chicken was crispy and juicy on the inside. It’s an excellent dish when you have guests coming to dinner! I mean, who doesn’t like chicken?? ok, well I do know one person.

I served this with mashed red  potatoes and pan roasted brussel sprouts.  I poured some of the pan juices on my potatoes and DEELICIOUS. You have to try this dish.

Pan Roasted Stuffed Chicken

for 2 Chicken breasts or thighs
1/2 cup blue cheese or ranch salad dressing
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2  oz cream cheese
salt and pepper

In a bowl, mix together the cheeses and salad dressing. Rub salt and pepper into the chicken skin. You can stuff the chicken 2 ways……under the skin or by making a slit into the center of the chicken and putting the stuffing there. Don’t try to over stuff. You can always add more stuffing about 10 minutes before removing from oven. Place chicken in a cast iron skillet or a roasting pan. Roast for about 1 hour at 390 degrees. About 5 minutes before removing from oven, add 2 tablespoons of butter into the roasting pan. Remove from oven and serve with your favorite potatoes and veggie…..or rice! yes, rice would be good too. M-m-mm-m-mmm.

We had a bit of rain here in San Diego county this weekend. According to the local news there was “major flooding throughout the county”. Hmmm, we had barely a sprinkle in my little town. But it sure was enough to make my rainy weather chili. Are you kidding…..anytime it is the least bit overcast here, I am making a pot of chili or soup. This time it was chili. There is a lot of stuffs in my chili. Yum. I like it pretty spicy, but you certainly don’t have to make it real spicy if you are a little on the wimpy side! I must admit, I can’t handle the heat as much as I used to. So sad…sucks getting old. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this. Leftovers are even better…

I like my chili served over some rice…..M-mmmm-m-m-m. I also like it over spaghetti noodles….YUM-m-m-mm-m……or over an egg and cheese omelet……or nachos……or hot dogs, with onion…….or cake! just kidding……..just checking to see if you are paying attention, 🙂

Chili

1 lb ground beef
1 package of chorizo
2 pork chops, diced
1 medium onion, minced
3 cloves of fresh garlic, minced
1 small bunch of cilantro, minced
2 fresh poblano chili peppers
1  jalapeno, minced
1 large can of pinto beans
1 medium can of kidney beans
1 large can of diced tomatoes
1 medium can of diced tomatoes
1 small can of tomato sauce (I use a little yellow can called El Pato, Mexican tomato sauce)
2 bay leaves
1 tsp ground cumin
2 tablespoons of chili powder
1 small can corn
1 small can diced green chilis
1 bottle of your favorite beer
brown the meats together. Add onion, garlic, cilantro, poblano and jalapeno. Let onions get a bit soft.  Add everything else. Let it simmer for at least an hour. You can do this in the crock pot too….all day at low temp. Simple, right??? YES! You will love this.

OH, you can use chicken  instead of the other meats if you want and maybe SOYRIZO instead of CHORIZO.