Meatloaf

Look at all that meat! Well, you probably can't tell what it is in that basket. The picture just looks like I've been stocking up on boxes and boxes of pork products. I assure you that I have not. That would just be weird. I bought that pork from a man selling meat door to door. Then, I gave meat as Christmas presents last year. Men like meat. See?? Not weird. I didn't give any to the ladies. That would have been weird. Ladies like chocolate. But, I didn't give any ladies chocolate either. I knitted things and you can't wear a chocolate scarf....How fun would a chocolate scarf be? Like those candy necklaces when you were a kid. You could stay warm and nibble on chocolate all day. Someone should totally invent that! I would wear it. Definitely. But, I digress. 

Yesterday, Robbie and I were hauling some hay out to the horses. On the way in, I went out to the freezer to grab some ground beef for chili. It was perfect chili weather here in north Texas, cold and rainy. The freezer door was stuck. That's weird. Its a small upright freezer. I yanked on it and when it finally opened I noticed that the ground beef on the door was thawed. OH NO!!! Then, I started grabbing the meat further in and its thawed too. And there's a big, giant glacier at the top of the freezer. The stupid glacier got so big it pushed open my door. It has a mind of its own. Meanwhile, much like what they had to contend with on the Titanic and their big, stupid glacier, I have to contend with all this meat. 

Okay, okay. I know that my problem is not nearly as big as the problems on the Titanic. I get it. But, it FEELS that big at the moment and that's GOT  to count for something, right?

What you don't see in the picture is about 8 pounds of thawed, grass fed ground beef, 2 pounds of free range chicken breast, 1 whole free range chicken, 2 Amy's Kitchen cheese pizzas, 3 Eating Right frozen dinners (which were thrown away. I don't even know how long they've been in there.) 2 Pork roasts, 2 pork loins, 1 package of grass fed filet mignon, and 4 packages of nitrate/nitrite free bacon, in addition to all the pork you see at the top. Stuck inside the glacier is a free range turkey breast, more chicken, and a few more cheese pizzas. I'm attempting to defrost said glacier in an attempt to free the trapped meat at this moment.

Also, as an aside, what you don't see is that my floors are really a gorgeous, golden, hand hewn, expertly polished, wide plank wood. You just can't see that because its hidden in ugly linoleum. Its really there. Just in my imagination. But, now its in your imagination too, and that's like having the real thing, right? Or is that weird too?

So, at first Robbie couldn't be more excited. He's watching football and looking at the prospect for a meat filled feast. I thought so too at first. Then I calmed down and realized that a lot of that meat was not quite thawed so I cleaned out the freezer in the house and stored it there. Then, I cooked some of the pork for dinner. (It wasn't very good. Don't buy meat from door to door salesmen.) I boiled a package of chicken for a soup later this week, I gave a few questionable packages to the dogs and cats. They were so happy, they acted like it was their last meal on the Titanic. But, I still have 6 pounds of ground beef, the filet mignons, and a small pork loin that needs to be cooked. I'm on the lookout for a pressure canner to can some of the beef.  Meanwhile, I can spread that much meat out over the week, cook it and freeze it for later.

Tonight we'll be having meatloaf. This is my favorite meatloaf recipe:

Ingredients:

• 1 can (6 oz)  tomato paste
• ½ c dry red wine
• ½ c water
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• ½ tsp dried basil leaves
• ¼ tsp dried oregano
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 c oatmeal
• 1 egg 
• ½ c shredded zucchini

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Combine the tomato paste, wine, water, garlic, basil, oregano, and salt in a small saucepan.
• Bring to a boil, and reduce the heat to low. Simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Set aside.
• Combine the beef, oatmeal, egg , zucchini, and ½ cup of the tomato mixture in a large bowl. Mix well.
• Shape into 4 small loaves and bake for about 20 minutes.
• Discard any drippings. Pour  the remaining tomato mixture over the top of the loaf.
• Bake for 15 minutes longer. Remove to a serving platter.
• If you don't want to use wine, you can substitute the wine and water for 1 cup of beef broth

I will probably double or even triple it up and freeze it for later. Then, I'll be making the chili, some chicken soup, and...... Oh gosh, I'm already getting tired thinking of it. I'll for sure have to grill up those steaks or else I'll be in trouble and get thrown overboard! Wish me luck because much like the frozen ocean water from the Titanic, its snowing here in north Texas and I won't last long. 

Okay, okay, I know its not really like the Titanic but in my imagination it kinda is, so that makes it kinda real, right? Is that weird?

This post is linked to Barn Hop, Real Food 101, Monday Mania, and Fat Tuesday