Recipe(tried): A Story and A Recipe for You.... Old Fashioned Meatloaf, Gourmet Potatoes, Baby Carrots with Brown Sugar and Mustard, Cinnamon Fried Apples, The BEST Buttermilk Biscuits

Hello Everyone,

I think I have told you before that after my DH gets home from his office, he likes to take 3 mile walks to unwind, plus it is good exercise for him. Well, on Tuesday he came home and called through the garage for me to appear with my eyes closed and my two hands out. I thought to myself, "betcha he found a turtle"...so I walked out to the garage with hands outstretched and soon felt the familiar soft fur of a kitten and a soft meow!! Oh-Oh.....

He had found it in the grass as he was walking home...he walked a mile with this soft little thing in his hands close to him. I quickly checked him out and determined he was a boy, and he also had some fleas! He looked awfully young, at most 4 weeks because of his teeny teeth and size.

I gave him a bath with a good cat shampoo, blew-dried him and fluffed him up, cleaned out his ears with a special solution and quickly made an appointment at the vet for him. The told me to come in at 8AM on Wednesday....$76.00 later, they confirmed he was free of any diseases, too young to have shots yet, very healthy for a stray, confirmed his age to be 4 weeks, born around the 10th or 11 of September.... His name is Victory!!! I think his mamma was transporting her kittens from one spot to another, got spooked and dropped him.

He is one very lucky kitty, he gets bottle fed kitten formula every three hours, gets a lot of love and could not have found a better home. He is grey with white and his eyes are till blue. I haven't even litter trained him yet, although the vet told me he can be. I wipe a wet cloth on his bottom so he can tinkle. And, for the time being his crib is a laundry basket with a big fluffy towel to hide in with two beany babies as surrogate sibblings!!! He sure is cute when he gets to come out and play soccer with a crochet ball that used to belong to Moochie!! Aren't kittens the best???

Tonight we will enjoy a favorite meal, meat loaf and the trimmings!!

Keep Safe!! Gina

Old Fashioned Meatloaf

1 1/2 lbs. ground sirloin
2 eggs beaten
1 cup Italian Bread crumbs seasoned with 1/3 cup Parmesan
1 cup milk
1/2 cup finely minced onion
1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley
1/4 cup finely chopped green pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped red pepper
2 Tbsp. worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
3 garlic cloves pressed
1/8 tsp. thyme

Glaze: 1/2 cup ketchup, 1 Tbsp. brown sugar, 1 tsp. dijon mustard, 1 tsp. worcestershire sauce

Preheat oven to 350. Litely oil a loaf pan.
In a large bowl combine all ingredients except glaze ingred. Mix well and place in prepared loaf pan. Bake 1 hour. Meanwhile, mix glaze ingred together. Brush meatloaf with this and bake an additional 10 mts. Remove from oven and let sit 10 mts. before slicing.

Gourmet Potatoes
Some Like It South
Jr. League of Pensacola, Fl
serves 6-8

6 med. potatoes
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 1/2 cups grated cheddar cheese
1 cup sour cream
2 scallions, chopped
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 Tbsp. paprika
2 Tbsp. butter, softened
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese

Cover potatoes with salted water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook 30 minutes till tender. Drain and cool slightly. Peel and coarsely shred potatoes, set aside.

Combine melted butter and the 1 1/2 cups cheddar in a small saucepan. Cook over low heat stirring constantly till cheese is melted. Combine the potatoes, the cheese sauce, sour cream, scallions, salt, and pepper, stir well. Spoon the mixture into a greased 2-qt. casserole, sprinkle with paprika, dot with the softened butter and the remaining grated cheeese. Cover and bake 300F for 25 minutes.

Baby Carrots with Brown Sugar and Mustard
Cold-Weather Cooking by
Sarah Leah Chase, pg. 81
makes 6 servings

1 lb. baby carrots
3 Tbsp. butter
2 1/2 Tbsp. light brownsugar
1 Tbsp. grainy Dijon mustard

Steam carrots til crisp tender, 8 minutes. Melt the butter in a skillet, stir in the sugar and mustard to make a smooth sauce. Add the cooked carrots and toss to coat Cook one minute more and serve at once.

Cinnamon Fried Apples

These are from canned apples that I buy when I go to the mountains up in North Carolina. I brought 8 cans back with me last October but this year I am buying a case, they are that good. They are marketed by Luck's and they are superior!!! This is a nice alternative to apple sauce.

1 can of Luck's Fried apples
1 Tbsp. apple pie spice
1 Tbsp. butter

In a skillet, melt the butter, add the spice and then add the apples with all the juices. Cook until bubbly. Delicious!!!

6 tart apples- peeled and sliced (Granny Smith works great)
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 cup bacon dripplings
1/4 cup brown sugar- packed
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
dash of nutmeg

In a large skillet melt bacon drippings. Add apples evenly over the skillet bottom. Sprinkle with the lemon juice, brown sugar and salt. Cover and cook for 15 minutes over low heat until apples or tender and juicy. Sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir gently and cook for about 5 minutes longer until juice thickens slightly.

The bacon drippings is the key to this recipe. I know it sounds strange but remember we are talking about "Fried" Apples.

The BEST Buttermilk Biscuits
makes 12 biscuits

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
5 Tbsp. chilled solid veg. shortening
1 cup buttermilk

Oven at 425.
In a large bowl, sift together all the dry ingredients. Using a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut the shortening into the flour mixture until coarse crumbs appear.

Add the buttermilk, tossing with a fork until a dough forms.

Turn dough out onto a floured surface, gathering into a disk. Knead litely a few times until smooth. Pat it down to 3/4 inch thick. Use a biscuit cutter or a glass dipped in flour, cut out biscuits. Place them 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Gather dough trimmings and begin process again til you have 12 biscuits. Bake 12-15 mts. Serve hot with butter and jam or preserves.