Magical Meatloaf Memories
Posted: Monday, May 10, 2010
by Dianne Lehmann
Artisan Jewelry from SyZyGy
My mom, bless her soul, was not a good cook. Her idea of a vegetable was something that came out of a can. Green beans, peas, corn, creamed corn; we never even saw the frozen kind. Mushy peas, tasteless green beans and corn that stuck to your teeth like glue (she liked to bake the corn in the oven until it was dry and sticky for some reason) was part of our normal fare. On occasion, she would boil sliced carrots and celery together until they became a largely unrecognizable mass of something that pigs might not eat. But she was the queen of meatloaf.
Now and then, Mom would make "pizza." She would make a dough from Bisquick and on top of that she would smear an entire can of tomato paste and sprinkle on some oregano. Then she would spread the ground beef she had cooked to a dry, brown doneness in a sauce pain on top the paste. Next, she would place very thin slices of sharp cheddar cheese (the only cheese my dad would eat and the only kind we had in the house) carefully over the top of all that. Into the oven it would go until the crust was done. It did not look like pizza. It did not smell like pizza. It did not taste like pizza. But I wasn't to know this until some many years later.
One night, I was on a date arranged for me by my mom and grandma. After the movie, his parents dropped us off in front of a pizza parlor for dinner. When I saw the place, I asked if we couldn't go someplace else. As far as I knew, I did not like pizza. His parents were not amenable and he really wanted pizza, so I settled in for an unenjoyable meal. Boy was I surprised.
It wasn't until I met my husband-to-be, Bernd, that I learned what good cooking was. The first time he invited me to dinner at his house was an eye-opener. There were no canned vegetables in his mother's pantry, but there were a few frozen in the freezer. The fridge was full of fresh veggies of all kinds; broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels ' sprouts, spinach, but no carrots. Bernd's dad couldn't stand them. When I met Bernd and his mom and dad, I realized I really did like vegetables a lot. It was just cans that I wasn't too fond of.
Bernd's mom made all sorts of wonderful vegetable dishes. She made foods (mostly German dishes) I had never even heard of but that were heavenly. I aspired to being a good cook like she was. But you know, she never made meatloaf and even if she had, I'm not sure she could have done it half as well as my mom did.
Mom would chop and dice lots of onion, carrot and celery. She would get out the parsley flakes (a precious commodity in our house) and add them to the bowl. She would throw in an egg and a whole bunch of crushed soda crackers. Then came the catsup; lots of it. Salt and pepper were added when she dumped in the raw ground beef. Then her hands went into it and massaged it around until it became a great, gluey, homogenous mess. She always made more than a loaf pan could hold (leftover meatloaf sandwiches are to die for) and so she would put the big glob of goodness into her largest casserole and pat it down all nice and even. The pice de rsistance was a generous slathering of more catsup all over the top of it. Then into the oven it would go. The smell of it baking was like heaven and the catsup topping became a caramelized treat. If I could have eaten only the top of it, I would have. For sure, I always saved that part for last.
When Bernd and I were first married, Mom's meatloaf was my best dish and I made it exactly the way she did. But having developed all the food allergies that I have, I've had to make a lot of changes to her original recipe. But my meatloaf is till rippin' good. Just ask Bernd. I use a lot of veggies just like Mom did. She did it to stretch the meat. I do it for love of vegetables. And I can't use prepared catsup because it is mostly sweetened with corn syrup. But a can of tomato paste, some rice vinegar and raw, washed cane sugar does a nice approximation. I throw in a few spices Mom never thought of; like paprika and I use celery seed instead of fresh celery to help lower the sodium level. And orange, red and yellow bell peppers round out the flavor.
Respecting efficiency in all things as I do, I mix up the mess right in the casserole in which I will be baking it in the microwave. Yes, you can make an awesome meatloaf in the microwave oven.
So many of my fondest memories are wrapped up in foods and the smells of cookies baking before Christmas, Easter ham, New Year's lasagna and so much more. But every time I make a meatloaf takes me back to the fondest of moments. Mom, Dad, my sister and me settled around the dinner table, chatting about the day we just had and simply enjoying Mom's magical meatloaf.
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Top-level comments on this article: (5 total)I love meatloaf, mashed potatoes and creamed corn! My mother used to make that meal too. She would always include a cucumber salad, which I do too. The meal tastes great, but I agree with you, it really is about the memories it brings back. Nice article Dianne.Hi Brianna.Wow! That's something. Almost the exact same meal. Wish my mom would have included a cucumber salad. :) I make my cucumber salad with thinly sliced onions, rice vinegar, a little sugar, toasted sesame seed oil and sesame seeds. Bernd's mom made hers with onion, evaporated milk and vinegar. I like it both ways but can't have the milk anymore.Thanks for reading and commenting. You know that I always appreciate it!Hugs,Dianne
Sounds like you and I had the same mom in the kitchen. My step mom burned every thing. Nice tribute to your Mom.Hi Linda.It didn't really start as a tribute to my mom, but I guess it sort of ended up that way. In my youth, a lot of my mom's "failings" were a source of annoyance to me. But as I've become older and hopefully wiser, they have just become endearing. It's also helped me to recognize and accept my own "failings."Luckily Mom didn't burn much! But the vinegar meringue pie she made when she didn't have any lemons was a bit much. What a shock that first bite was.Thanks for reading and commenting!Dianne
OK you set us up for this one now when are you going to post your meatloaf recipe? Looking forward to it almost as much as your next story!Hi Marijo.Oh boy! I don't really use recipes or measure anything. I'm not sure I could write it up any better than I already did. But I could give it a try ... it might be kind of funny. :)Thanks for reading and commenting.Hugs,DianneYou are a hoot! I know what you mean about measuring - made one of my favorite recipes yesterday and actually put in twice the broth and double the chile and garlic and instead of 2tbsp onion chopped a whole onion!
This is such a creatively written recipe for meatloaf, Dianne! Funny, it's also one of my favorite foods from childhood. And meatloaf sandwiches, yes!!!I'm going to try your rippin' good recipe. Only I'm smothering mine in rich thick gravy...
Jennifer
xxxHi Jennifer.Mmmm! GRAVY. Now there's a great idea. I've had it that way once or twice and thought it was great. I'm just not a great gravy maker ... except if I've roasted some chickens. Seems like you can't mess up chicken gravy.Thanks for reading and all that jazz!Hugs,Dianne
I love meatloaf. It has always been a part of my nutrition. I like when stuffing is added in it to add to its already tasty flavor.Hi James.Ooh! I never thought about that. That sounds really tasty. I love sage and rosemary anyway, but never thought of using it with anything but chicken. How provincial of me. :)Thanks for reading and commenting!Dianne
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