Picture Perfect Cooking

Meatloaf is one of those foods that you either love or hate.  I used to hate it but now I love it!!  C still hates it and will not touch it with a 10 foot pole, so when I make this, it gets taken to a family dinner.  I had searched for a good, easy meatloaf recipe that resulted in a firm, dry loaf because I did not want it to be too wet and sticky. 

This quick and easy recipe is perfect!  It was given to me by my co-worker, K, who is a great cook.  If you like a dense, solid meatloaf that has just the right amount of moisture in it, try this one.  I think you will love it. 

P.S.  It also makes great leftover sandwiches.  You just can’t beat two pieces of white bread with a warm slice of meatloaf in between them.  Yummy!

1 lb ground beef

8 oz can tomato sauce

1/2 medium onion, chopped

2/3 cup crushed saltine crackers

salt & pepper to taste

1/4 cup ketchup

1 tbsp brown sugar

pepper to taste

Please ignore the sleeping dog in the above photo!!  Ha, ha!  Ellie has such a hard life!  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Prepare a baking sheet.  Since I didn’t want the meatloaf to sit in the juices while it was cooking, here is what I did.  Put a piece of foil on a baking sheet to catch the drips.  Take a baking rack that is smaller than the sheet pan and cover it with foil.  Punch a bunch of holes in the foil on the rack to allow the juices to drain.  This results in a slightly drier meatloaf which is how I like it.  If you want it wetter, just skip this step.

Combine the beef, tomato sauce, onion, and cracker crumbs in a large bowl.  I just use my hands to mash it all together.  Season with salt and pepper.  Shape into a loaf and place it on the rack.

Cook for one hour.  Just before the hour is up, combine the ketchup, brown sugar, and a little black pepper.  Spread this mixture on the top of the meatloaf and cook for 10 more minutes.  Enjoy!!

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Check out Eat At Home Cook’s site today for a spotlight on pudding mixes. Yum!!!

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I have a love/hate relationship with coconut…I love the flavor but I hate the texture.  To me, it is like chewing on candle wax, which is not very appetizing.  When I found this recipe in the December/January 2011 issue of “Taste of Home” magazine, I knew I had to give it a try.

What is different about this coconut cake you ask?  Well, I will tell you.  Instead of using shredded coconut for the flavor, it uses coconut MILK!!!  Woo hoo!  The flavor without the texture!

Here is a little word to the wise…if you are shopping at Kroger in the south central Kentucky area, do not look for coconut milk in the baking aisle.  I thought the logical place for it was with the sweetened condensed and evaporated milks.  I mean it is coconut MILK, for goodness sake!  Nope, it is in the foreign foods aisle.  I learned that coconut milk is used a lot in Asian cuisine.  There is a little trivia for you.

For the cake:

6 egg whites, room temperature

3/4 cup butter softened

1 1/3 cup granulated sugar

1 cup coconut milk

1/2 cup 2% milk

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 1/4 cup cake flour

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

For the syrup:

1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk

1 14oz can coconut milk (I used a 13.5 oz can and a little from the can for the cake.)

For the topping:

1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

3 tbsp confectioner’s sugar

1/4 tsp vanilla

Place the egg whites in a large bowl and set aside.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 13×9” baking pan with non-stick spray.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Combine the coconut milk, milk and vanilla.  Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.

Add the flour mixture and milk mixture to the butter/sugar combo alternately, beginning and ending with the flour.

With clean beaters, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form.  Gradually fold the egg whites into the cake batter.  Spread into the prepared pan and bake for 40-45 minutes.

Poke holes in the cake with a skewer about 1/2 inch apart.  Combine the syrup ingredients; slowly pour over the cake, allowing the mixture to absorb into it.  Let stand for 30 minutes.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

In a large bowl, beat the cream until it begins to thicken.  Add the confectioner’s sugar and vanilla.  Beat until soft peaks form.  Spread over the cake.

Look how creamy the inside of this cake is!!

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It is another ingredient spotlight day at Eat At Home Cooks.  Today’s main ingredient is tomato sauce.

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One of the blogs that I read regularly is Chickens In The Road.  If you have not read this lady’s writing, you really need to!  She is a former romance writer living “the simple life” on a West Virginia farm.  She has chickens, goats, dogs, kids, and now a cow and calf.  Her point of view is really entertaining and informative at the same time.

This recipe is from her blog and I think it is the first one of hers that I have tried.  It was also a raging success!  I do have one little note to make about these cookies…they are much softer the day they are made.  The taste is still great on the second day, but they were a little too hard for my taste.  When I fix these again, I may cut the cooking time down just a minute or two and see if that fixes my problem.

1 cup butter

1 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 3/4 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup cocoa

1 cup nuts, crushed or chopped (I used pecans.)

semi-sweet chocolate chips

powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cream the butter, sugar, and vanilla.  Stir in the flour, cocoa and nuts.

Divide the dough in half and wrap the two balls in plastic wrap.  Chill one hour.

Scoop spoonfuls of chilled cookie dough or slice it like I did.  Flatten each into a circle and drop in 3 chocolate chips.  Shape into balls, tucking the chips inside. Place on an ungreased baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes.  While still warm, roll in powdered sugar and, as Suzanne says, eat in copious amounts!

Come join the fun at the My Baking Addiction and GoodLife Eats Holiday Recipe Swap sponsored by Scharffen Berger.

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