The Pajama Chef

A Different Kind of Meatloaf

September 30, 2010December 8, 2015 Sarah

Confession time: I like meatloaf.

I know, I know. Meatloaf isn’t exactly gourmet or pretty or anything like that. While it tastes good, it looks funny and kind of gross. I mean, it’s a lump of meat with some sauce. But once you get over that initial aversion and flashbacks to the elementary school cafeteria’s mystery meat… it’s not that bad. Just some meat, baked in a pan, with some flavorings thrown in. Not so bad, huh? And if you make it yourself, then you know exactly what is in it–no mystery at all!

I have several meatloaves [is that a word?] that I like to make–a classic recipe of my mom’s, and a BBQ bacon cheddar meatloaf that is tasty too! While my husband likes both meatloaves and inhales them because he loves meat, there is one thing he dislikes about my meatloaves: the inclusion of the onion.

Ben despises and hates onions with a passion. This hatred of onions was exacerbated when he lost a March Madness bet in college and had to eat an onion like an apple.

I didn’t know him at the time, but from what I’ve heard, this was not a fun night. Fortunately the girl [yes–a girl bet him on this one :)] was nice and let him off the hook pretty soon after these photos were taken. However, the damage was done. The hatred Ben had prior to this event has just grown. While he will tolerate onions in many dishes, he’ll pick them out most of the time. This happens a lot, because many of my favorite recipes include onions–and I love the flavor of onions. However, because I love him, I will decrease the amount of onion but if it’s there, it’s there, and Ben knows it.

So, what does all this talk of onion have to do with meatloaf? Well, recently we had meatloaf on the menu… and I decided to create an onion-less meatloaf. To do this, and do it well, I decided to avoid the traditional tomato-based flavor palate of meatloaf and branch out. The result? A dish made with a combination of Southwest and Indian-esque spices with just enough kick to remind you of their presence, paired with beef, bread crumbs, egg, and cheese to remind you that this is meatloaf after all.

Delicious.

Savory.

Spicy.

Satisfying… even when onion-less.

Finally, I apologize for this picture… meatloaf is ridiculously hard to photograph! This dish is really tasty, I promise, even if it doesn’t look it!

A Different Kind of Meatloaf

Servings: 6
Time: 75 minutes
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Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef
1 egg, beaten
1 1/4 cups milk
1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
1 teaspoon cilantro
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/4 cup salsa – be sure to pick an onion-less variety if that’s an issue for you
1/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese, optional
cooking spray

Directions:

Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan with cooking spray. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, use your hands to combine all ingredients well, then transfer to the loaf pan. Top with cheddar cheese if desired. Bake for 60 minutes or until cooked all the way through.

Are you into meatloaf… the dish or the singer, take your pick!

Pasta, Recipes, Sides

Sweet Asian Pasta Salad

September 29, 2010December 8, 2015 Sarah

Planning my lunch during the week is one of biggest stresses of my day. This is mostly because I have to take a packed lunch. Since I don’t always have access to a microwave [and never have access to a fridge], I have to get creative about packing filling and tasty cold lunches. I can only eat so many sandwiches! One of the ways I’ve been able to mix up my lunches and ensure that I actually enjoy what I eat is by making creative pasta salads. I used to just pour some ranch dressing and BBQ sauce on my pasta and call it a day. But now, I’ve become a little more grown-up with my cold pasta toppings, and have found a few combinations that I absolutely love! This Sweet Asian mix is one of them.

I love the burst of flavors in every bite. Garlic and onion mixed with the sweetness of honey and peanut butter. The tang of cilantro mellowing with the spice of red chili peppers. Plus veggies for some crunch! Add some apple slices, carrots, and crackers and you have yourself one tasty lunch!

Sweet Asian Pasta Salad

Servings: 6
Time: 25 minutes
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Ingredients:

8 ounces whole wheat penne pasta, uncooked
1/2 cup green pepper, diced
1/2 cup broccoli crowns, cut into bite-sized pieces if necessary
1/4 cup red onion, chopped
1/4 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
1 large clove garlic, minced
2 1/2 tablespoons coconut milk
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons natural peanut butter
2 teaspoons lime juice
freshly ground pepper
red chili flakes

Directions:

Cook pasta according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, whisk together coconut milk, olive oil, honey, soy sauce, lime juice, and peanut butter. Combine green pepper, broccoli, onion, garlic, and cilantro together in a medium sized bowl (my one quart bowl was just barely big enough). When pasta is cooked to al dente, add to veggies, pour in dressing and toss with salad tongs to coat. Serve immediately or refrigerate/ice pack until lunch time! 🙂

Do you pack your lunch? What are some of your lunchtime favorites?

Breads, Breakfast, Recipes

Rebel Banana Bread

September 28, 2010December 8, 2015 Sarah

Banana bread is a staple in my life. I love bananas and purchase them just about every week. We can go through a whole bunch in a few days if we’re not careful. But sometimes I instruct my husband to not eat them because I have plans for them. Banana bread is also my go-to remedy for eradicating fruit flies, because they inevitably show up when bananas have been chilling on the fridge for a little too long. This doesn’t happen too often, but when it does… ya gotta do what ya gotta do, right?

For much of my life, I’ve been an advocate of sticking with my Grandma’s recipe. It’s a classic banana nut bread, and it is 110% delicious. Sometimes when I’m feeling a little out of sorts and in the mood for some extra sweetness I might add some butterscotch chips. I am normally a follow the rules kinda person but I do have my moments.

On the rare occasion when I am feeling completely over the top, I know I have to be radical and seize the moment. It is rare after all. I was having one of those rebellious days last week, and this banana bread is the result.

This banana bread includes a smattering of chocolate chips and a burst of coconut flavor in every banana-y bite. The recipe is not mine, though I did tweak it a little bit but subbing coconut oil for the regular oil and adding coconut flakes for a little texture and chewiness. It’s great with a cup of cold milk for a bedtime [I just typed “breadtime”–that works too!], or with a mug of hot coffee for breakfast. You should make it really soon–even if you’re not in a rebellious state of mind. I probably will be making it again soon too… I was just informed by my husband that I may not be allowed to go back to a non-chocolate chip banana bread. Uh oh. I may have entered the dark side, and taken you all along for the ride! My sincerest apologies… and to make it up to you… the recipe.

Rebel Banana Bread

Servings: 12
Time: 70 minutes
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from Good (&Cheap) Eats

Ingredients:

2 bananas, mashed
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup coconut oil
2 eggs
1/3 cup coconut milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup coconut flakes, unsweetened
cooking spray

Directions:

Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan with cooking spray. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix bananas, sugar, oil, eggs, coconut milk, and vanilla. In a separate bowl, whisk together flours and baking soda. Gradually fold dry ingredients into wet ingredients, then add coconut flakes and chocolate chips and stir gently to combine. Spoon batter into pan and bake for about 50-60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Use a sheet of aluminum foil to cover bread during baking if it starts to get too dark before it is fully cooked.

How do you like your banana bread? Plain? Or with crazy mixins? Please share!

Main Dishes, Pizza, Recipes

Calzones

September 27, 2010December 8, 2015 Sarah

So I lied. I was going to get to posting this recipe on Saturday, but that just didn’t happen. Somehow I spent the whole day lounging on the couch, doing laundry, watching Letters to Juliet, going to the grocery store [my first visit to Aldi’s], and baking cookies. What did you do this weekend?

[Anyways, enough about my unproductive Saturday. On to regularly scheduled programming…]

You know how there are some foods that seem really difficult to make well at home? Some of the foods that make my list for difficult to prepare well at home are chicken fingers [or really any coated meat], tofu, tortillas, and many fancy Italian-restaurant favorites. Pizza used to be on that list. It’s not anymore. So did calzones. Now they aren’t. Yay!

There are several local restaurants that serve amazing calzones, and I’ve tried to make them at home before with no success, so I was intimated to try again. But try again I did, and this time, was very pleased with the results. I had a lot of leftover pizza sauce in the freezer and As my husband described them, the dough was perfectly cooked–crispy on the outside, and soft on the inside… exactly as you’d want it to be. I’m excited that now I can satisfy my calzone craving at home. I love saving some dough [ha ha ha, I crack myself up] and controlling the ingredients. It’s a win-win situation!

Calzones

from The Bread Lover’s Bread Machine Cookbook by Beth Hensperger, recommended by Life As Mom

Ingredients:

1 1/8 cup water
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 3/4 teaspoons bread machine yeast
2/3 cup pizza sauce + more for dipping
mozzarella cheese
desired toppings [I used about 1/3 cup sautéed chopped onions and green peppers; Ben used pepperoni.]
water for basting

Directions:

Add all dough ingredients [water, olive oil, flours, salt, yeast] to the pan of your breadmaker according to the manufacturer’s directions. My breadmaker calls for liquids and salt, then dry ingredients, then yeast, but yours may be different.

Turn on the breadmaker using the “dough” setting.

When dough is prepared, remove from the pan and turn out the dough on a floured work surface or countertop. Divide the dough into desired number of portions–we just made two huge calzones for baking ease, but you could make 4 medium-sized calzones or even 8-12 small, appetizer-sized calzones.

About 30 minutes before baking, preheat oven to 425 degrees and oil and cornflour a baking sheet [or use parchment paper].

Use a rolling pin to roll out dough thinly, then place desired fillings [1/3 cup sauce, cheese, and anything else you dream up] over half of the dough. Be sure to leave a one inch border so it can be closed up easily.

Homemade Calzones - easier than you think!

Then fold over the dough side [on right in the above photo] and pinch up the sides with your fingers pie-crust style.

Baste top of calzone with water. Cut slits in the calzone for air ventilation and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Allow to rest for about 10 minutes prior to eating. Serve with pizza sauce for dipping.

Notes:

Each calzone is really large if you split the dough in half, fyi. I ate about 1/3 of mine in one sitting, then ate the rest as leftovers.

While I haven’t done this personally, tips for converting breadmaker recipes to manual [aka your own two hands] recipes can be found here and here. Good luck! 🙂