Dill Pickle Meatloaf

Wow! This tastes delicious! If you love dill pickles, you are going to LOVE this meatloaf. This recipe is from one of my favorite sites and can be found here. This didn't need any adjustments, the only thing I did differently was to use dry Italian bread crumbs instead of fresh bread and cooked it in the microwave to drain away all the fat :)

Ingredients

• 1 egg
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup dill pickle juice
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 slice bread, torn into small pieces or 1/2 - 3/4 cup dry bread crumbs
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1/4 cup chopped dill pickles
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 8x8 inch baking dish.
2. Beat the egg in a mixing bowl. Whisk in the onion, pickle juice, salt, and pepper. Stir in the bread until soggy, then mix in the ground beef until evenly combined. Form into a loaf and place into the prepared pan. Stir together the chopped pickles, ketchup, water, sugar, and Worcestershire sauce; pour over the meatloaf.
3. Bake in the preheated oven until no longer pink in the center, about 1 hour. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 160 degrees F (70 degrees C). 

Alternatively, you can cook this in a Tupperware Micro Cooker so that fat drains from the meatloaf. I cooked it for approx. 35 minutes on high. I did put the lid on for the majority of the cooking and took it off the last 10 minutes.

Linda's Eggplant and Zucchini Casserole

If you have an abundance of eggplant and zucchini and you are looking for something different to make, give this recipe a try. I based it on a recipe I found online, but of course I had to make it my own ;-) All measurements are approximate, as I did not measure.

Ingredients:

2 medium eggplant, peeled and chopped 

1 medium zucchini, chopped

1 + 1/2 small - medium sized onion, chopped

1/2 med size green pepper (red pepper would be good too), chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon olive oil

Pinch of Salt

Approx. 1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper

Approx. 1 tsp. italian seasoning

1 cup italian bread crumbs, divided

2 eggs, beaten

1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Olive Oil

Directions:

In a microwave safe bowl, add the zucchini, eggplant, onion, green or red pepper and garlic. Add just a pinch of salt, you don't want any more than that or it will be too watery, as the salt draws out the moisture in the eggplant and zucchini. Add the black pepper. Coat the veggies in the 1 tbsp olive oil.  Make sure everything is coated. Put a lid on it and microwave approximately 8 minutes on high or until everything is soft. Let cool for about 5-10 minutes.

When slightly cooled, add 1/2 cup bread crumbs, 1 cup cheese and italian seasoning. Mix well and then add in the eggs. Mix well and put into a 1 quart greased casserole dish. Top with 1/2 cup cheddar cheese and top that with 1/2 cup bread crumbs. Drizzle olive oil over the top, you can kinda mix the crumbs with the oil, if you want. Then bake in a 350 oven for 25 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown.

Enjoy!! 

Linda's Crock Pot London Broil

I had a partially thawed London broil in the refrigerator and decided at the last minute to cook it in the crock pot. I had to think quickly so that it would be done for dinner, so here is my recipe:

London Broil

2 cups beef broth (I used Watkins Soup base - see below on how to order this)

Cornstarch

1 Bay leaf

Approx. 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 large onion

1/2 packet dry onion soup mix

dash Italian seasoning

Garlic Powder to taste

few fresh oregano leaves

Slice the onion in the bottom of the crock pot. Put the meat on top of the onion (I scored my meat so that the flavor would absorb). Mix your broth (if using Watkins) and add half to the pot. The other half, add about a tablespoon of cornstarch...mix so that there are not any clumps. Put the dry onion soup mix in the pot and pour remaining broth mixture on top. Sprinkle the Worcestershire sauce over the meat and add the garlic powder and Italian seasoning. Cook on high for approximately 4 hours. At the last hour before serving, add in the fresh oregano leaves.

Note: If your meat is thawed, cook on low for approximately 8 hours.

If you want a thicker gravy, during the last hour or so, mix a couple tablespoons Cold water and a couple tablespoons cornstarch together to make a paste and add to the liquid to help thicken it up.

I did not measure my seasonings, added according to what I like - so use your own judgment.

Optional: Serve with fresh mashed potatoes and other vegetable of your choice.

To order Watkins Beef Soup base - visit www.watkinsonline.com and upon checkout enter my consultant # 367300. The soup bases last a long time and you only need 1 1/2 tsp per 1 cup of hot water.