Recipe of the Week - Ina Garten's Meatloaf

 I have only watched a handful of Ina Garten's cooking shows.  I don't know why I haven't watched more because I did enjoy them.  Maybe one day.  Anyway, I was watching a cooking video on YouTube where they made Ina's meatloaf recipe.  I wanted to try it because it did not seem to be too complicated like some meatloaf recipes.  And I have never had much luck with meatloaf.  I have tried several different recipes, but none really hit the spot.  This one, however, did. It was magnificent.  Absolutely delicious and not hard at all. I am definitely going to make this one again.  If you like meatloaf and have not tried this before, I highly recommend it!

Ina Garten's Meatloaf

1 Tbsp olive oil

3 cups chopped yellow onions

1 tsp chopped fresh thyme*

2 tsps kosher salt

1 tsp fresh ground pepper

3 Tbsp Worcestershire

1/3 cup canned chicken stock

1 Tbsp tomato paste

2.5 lbs ground beef**

1/2 cup plain bread crumbs

2 XL eggs, beaten

1/2 cup ketchup.

Preheat oven to 325.  Heat olive oil in a sauté pan.  Add onions, thyme, salt and pepper.  Cook until onions are translucent but not brown.  Remove from heat.  Add Worcestershire, chicken stock and tomato paste.  Allow to cool slightly.  In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except ketchup.  Shape into a loaf on a sheet pan covered with parchment paper.  Spread ketchup evenly over top.  Bake for 1  hour and 15 minutes until meat thermometer reads 165.  Place a pan of hot water under meatloaf while cooking. 

* I could not find fresh thyme at my grocery store so I used 1/2 tsp dried instead

** I used 70/30 ground beef and it was fantastic

Paying Bills

 As I am working on building some savings, the bills are not helping at all.  I wrote a few days ago about how some days I feel like I am playing house.  Well, one thing that never was included when I played house as a child was paying bills.  It never crossed my mind back then.  I have no idea if my parents ever struggled to pay bills.  If they did, they sure did not make it known to me and Bill.  While they did not spend frivolously, we never went without, so I really have no clue about such things. 

Now this is not to say that I cannot pay my bills.  The purse strings are just a little tighter these days.  Hell, they are a lot tighter.  But I do pay them.  I pay them on time, usually before they are due.  And I try to make more than the minimum payments on things like credit cards.  Several of my utilities are on an equal payment plan. While this is good for the monthly budget, it can come back to bite you in the ass at the end of the year.  With those, I pay way more than I need to each month so that I do not have to worry about that.

Still, bills are just a part of life.  It is part of being an adult.  It is a vicious monthly cycle that rears its head every four weeks.  But if I am able to pay the bills, it means that I am alive, I am working, and I have the resources to do it.  There is something to be said about that.  Now, if only my salary raised at the same rate as the bills do.  Our energy provider, Duke Power, is proposing raising our rates here by 18%.  That is a might ridiculous to me.  If that does happen, I will be decreasing my power usage out of necessity.  It will be time to put all of those oil lamps to work LOL

In retrospect, it is a part of adulthood that I am glad I didn't really know about as a child.  I remember when I learned how to write a check when I was young.  That was so exciting.  I had no idea at the time how unexciting that would become later on.  Another exciting escapade in adulting LOL Ah, well. 

Getting started writing

 I have started keeping a notebook of ideas for stories to write.  I have these ideas at very different times so I like to have my notebook with me as much as possible so that I can jot them down before I forget them.  This is especially helpful at work. That will come in handy because I think that the first thing I want to write about is my experiences working in a retirement community.  Now, I don't know the format yet.  I don't want to write something autobiographical.  At least I think I don't.  But I would like to write about some of the things I've witnessed and the people that I know. 

I cannot decide if a throughline works best for this kind of thing or just a simple set of stories that all take place in the same location. I'm thinking that one main story throughout might be the way to go.  I have been developing a character to base the writing on.  I have also been working on other stories set in a similar location that have nothing to do with that character.  I am wondering if I can somehow combine the two.  I'm pretty sure that I can do that. 

I just need to really start putting pen to paper....or fingers to keyboard....and see what happens.  I know it will not be something immediate that will happen, but I am looking forward to trying.  Whether or not anyone would ever read it does not matter to me.  It will be a nice escape into a world that I already love. I have a friend on FB that is writing a book, and he has given himself a definite time limit. He's locked himself away in a hotel room until he completes his last 10 chapters.  That might be a little extreme for me but whatever works for you!

Getting started is always the hardest part.  Staring at the blank page, waiting for those first words to appear.  But I've got to start somewhere I suppose.  Otherwise, it will all just stay in my imagination.  That's not a bad thing necessarily but that is not the purpose of this exercise.  I used to love creative writing, and I miss it not being a part of my life.  We shall see how that goes. 

 Yesterday I was watching a Nancy Wilson concert on YouTube.  She was such a great performer and watching the concert reiterated my love for her as an amazing song stylist. "You Can Have Him" is from the 1949 Irving Berlin musical Miss Liberty.  I do not know anything about that show except that I love this song.  I need to seek that out and listen to cast album.  Still, this is a great version and I hope you enjoy it!

Were you there - an Easter hymn

 

Dyeing Easter eggs

 One of the things about Easter when I was growing up that I love to think about is dyeing Easter eggs.  It was something I looked forward to every year. It was always so exciting when I knew that Mom had bought home a Paas Easter Egg Coloring packet.  We would set aside a night to dye our eggs.  The pack had somewhere around 8 different colors in it.  They were tablets that we would put into separate bowls and add hot water and vinegar.  Watching the tablets dissolve was always so much fun because the tablets were not too revealing as to their true colors but once they dissolved, a rainbow of bright colors would evolve.

Lowering the hard-boiled eggs into the bowls and watching the dye take over and do its job.  How vibrant the egg would be depended on how long you left it in the dye. Once you were satisfied, then the egg had to be placed on a towel to dry. It always felt like it took forever for them to dry.  We always wanted to hide them immediately but no, we had to wait.  That felt like agony LOL But once they would dry, they would get hidden around the house and then Bill and I would search all over for them.  One year, Mom hid one in her hand.  We could not find that one, the last Easter egg, to save our lives.  But when she revealed that she had it in her palm I guess the egg had not dried as much as she thought because her hand was bright blue.  I remember it was a Wednesday night, and she then had to go to choir practice with a blue hand!

It was always a time of fun during the Easter season.  Our dyeing was basic. In those days there were not swirls or tie dyes or decals for the eggs.  If you wanted something two toned, you had to hold half of the egg in the dye with half of it out for what seemed like hours.  Then you had to put the hold the bare half down in another color.  It almost never worked well but it was fun to try.  Still, it was always fun.  And anytime I smell vinegar, it does not matter if I'm cooking with it or cleaning something with it, I always think of dyeing eggs.  It's one of those Easter memories that I cherish. 

Getting my weight down

 Now that warmer weather is upon us, I know that many of us are working on our diets and exercise.  Wearing shorts and t-shirts is becoming the norm this time of year and we all want to look good.  I will never have a beach body, unless you count a beached whale LOL  Just kidding.  But I am looking forward to taking this time of year and really concentrating on my physical goals. 

Getting my weight down and maintaining that is my priority right now.  One, it will be much better for my overall health.  I am classified by my doctor as morbidly obese.  Honestly, I'd much rather they just call me fat.  Morbidly obese is so clinical and yet terrifying at the same time.  Maybe that's the point? Maybe it's supposed to scare me into losing weight?  I don't do well with scare tactics LOL

Anyway, I am working on changing my eating habits.  I won't say that I am going to change my diet because let's be real, I love comfort food.  What I need to do is change the way that I eat.  I have been telling myself to not go back for seconds. I don't really need seconds even though I may want them.  Well, my brain thinks I want them but my body is actually ok without the seconds.  I am incorporating more things like salads and fish into my weekly diet.  I have learned the olive oil is my flavorful friend. And when I remind myself to actually chew my food, I am less likely to eat as much.  I know that may sound a might ridiculous, but I will often just inhale my food. 

About six months ago, I topped out at 265.  And that's not the heaviest I've ever been in my life either.  Still, I do not like that number.  I carry most of the extra weight in my belly.  Big shock.  So many of the t-shirts that I have worn for years have now become belly shirts.  I won't dare wear them out in public but around the house is ok....if my roommate isn't home LOL  Well, I have been incorporating some life changes and am starting to see some improvements.

I am trying to walk as much as I can.  i am not successful in making that an everyday thing yet but I will get there. As I eat less and move more, I am hoping to get myself into better shape. I have been able to stay under 250 lbs for a month now and I don't want that trend to change.  Keep your fingers crossed for me!