Meatloaf - I Would Do Anything For...

...Love Meatloaf.

That's right, I made meatloaf.

But not just any meatloaf.

In my spare time, which I seem to be having a lot of lately (where are you, sub calls?), I have developed a habit of reading other people's food blogs. As a fellow food lover, I really enjoy reading other people's cooking experiences (and experiments), and reading reviews of restaurants and the type of food people enjoy. So in my blog reading, I stumbled across a recipe for a Chicken Spinach Meatloaf that comes from the Weight Watchers 'Take 5' cookbook (which is apparently five ingredients or less in all recipes). Seemed fairly simple and I had everything on hand already, so on Monday I decided to make this. All it consists of is:

1 lb ground chicken
About 1 and 1/4 cup of chopped spinach (I used fresh instead of frozen and just chopped it in small pieces)
1 egg
1/2 cup of breadcrumbs ( I added more because it was too wet)
1 packet onion soup mix
a bit of salt and pepper for flavouring

Smoosh it all together and press into a greased (I used nonstick cooking spray) loaf pan, shaping into a loaf. Bake at 375 for about 30 minutes.

Delicious! I don't have the calorie or fat information for this recipe because the blogger I got it from (Food Snob) didn't have it listed. Anyway, I paired this with some homemade dollar fries and some StoveTop chicken stuffing. Oh, and a glass of ice water with lemon.

Spinach Meatloaf with Dollar Fries and Stovetop stuffing

Once you get past the fact that the meatloaf sort of looks like veiny cat food, you can actually start to appreciate it and enjoy the taste. Randy and I both really enjoyed this meal - it's especially good with ketchup but I'm biased because I like all meatloaf (and many meat items in general) smothered in ketchup,

Tuesday, Randy was feeling better so he decided to take me out for supper to make up for our missed Friday Don Cherry's meal. I wanted to go somewhere I hadn't yet blogged about (not that there are too many decent restaurant choices in the metropolis that is Grand Falls) so I suggested we go to the Peyton Steakhouse Corral restaurant in the Mount Peyton hotel. If you remember from my earlier postings, this is one of the three restaurants in the hotel I mentioned and this is the one where I had the crusty over-cooked (to the point of it being inedible) chicken breast. Why, you may ask, would I go back to a restaurant that made the turkey from National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation look succulent in comparison? Well, because I believe in second chances.

The first time I went to 48 High (Grand Falls' only high-class restaurant), I had a really crappy 30 dollar hazelnut crusted halibut and was completely turned off. It's not that the taste was so awful - just that I felt it was nothing spectacular for the price tag and while I enjoy a decent restaurant atmosphere, I'm paying for the food, not just the ambience.

But on Valentine's Day, we gave 48 High another try, and I had an amazing Scallop and Bacon Carbonara so I decided this place wasn't a write-off after all.

So I went into the Peyton steakhouse with the same attitude in mind - I mean, everyone deserves a second chance, don't they?

Well, not the Peyton steakhouse. You fail.

First of all, we were the only people there (bonus) but our waitress was a rude, rude lady (bonus removed). She seemed pissed off more than anything that she actually had to do her job (as when she was done serving us, she returned to her spot with another server at a table and proceeded to pick up where they had left off gossiping). She barely spoke a word to us, and when she did, it was quiet/under her breath and she looked annoyed that we were even there. I am HUGE on service. Crappy service, no tip. Simple as that.

I decided to get over her nastiness (but make a mental note for later) and awaited the bread. I will say this - the Peyton steakhouse has darn good bread. They send over this little mini loaf that you cut yourself, as you see Randy doing here:

It cuts about 4 pieces, is nice and warm, and seasoned with I don't know what, but it's delicious. I never understand the butter that accompanies it though. I mean, I love butter...but 9 little packages? That's like 3 packets of butter per slice. Holy arteries.
We nursed a beer (Randy) and a glass of white wine (me) while we perused the menu. I decided on the Maple Walnut pork tenderloin and Randy (who still wasn't feeling 100%) went for a bowl of soup and a caesar salad. Yes, call us lame that we did not order steak at a steakhouse but like I said before, I really only like steak that someone makes for me at home. Not a big restaurant steak person...too much meat!

When Patsy Pleasant, otherwise known as our waitress returned, I placed my Maple Walnut Pork Tenderloin order, only to hear:

``Now we don`t have the maple walnut stuff. It`s just a demi-glaze.``

Then why is it listed on your menu? Gah.

"That's fine," I said, a little disheartened. Not quite sure what a demi-glaze was either, but I was hungry and in no mood to have to look through the menu a second time.

While we waited for our meals "You sexy baby, you drive me crazy" (or whatever the name of that song is) came on. Really? Here we were in a nice restaurant with cloth tablecloths and dim lighting and of all the songs, they decided to put that one on? Between the mean waitress, non-existant menu item, and poor music choice, I had given this place three strikes.

Until they brought out my meal and I realized a place can actually get four strikes.

The "demi-glaze" was another word for barbecue sauce and vinegar poured over a (dry) sliced pork tenderloin. I also ordered a garden salad with balsamic vinaigrette (nothing special) and it came with bagged and thawed carrots and green beans. Bleh.

Pork Tenderloin

The pork tenderloin was dryer than dry, and if I can order a meal at a restaurant and realize that I could make it better myself at home, I am generally not a fan.

Randy, on the other hand enjoyed his soup (turkey vegetable):

and his salad as well:

He always seems to have a better experience at this restaurant than me. I gave this place two rotten tomatoes out of three and opted to leave shortly after eating (didn't even drink all my wine). Well wouldn't you know it, but as soon as we go up to pay, our waitress becomes Little Miss Chuckles and Conversation. How convenient. We gave her a half-ass tip (enough to prove that we are tippers, but she didn't deserve a good one) and we left.

I was hurting for a McDonald's vanilla soft serve so we swung through the drive-through on the way home and I satisfied my sweet tooth:

See? Why spend $19.99 on a crappy Grand Falls Restaurant meal when you can pay 2 bucks and get a McDonald's soft serve. So boss.

Today I made a recipe called 'Beef Satay with Peanut Sauce' that was in my 'How to Cook' cookbook that Mom gave me when I was fifteen.

Here's the ingredients:

1 lb rump or fillet steak (I don't think it matters...I just got marinating steak)
1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons teriyaki marinade
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons sherry (look online for substitutes if you don't have it...vinegar, water, and sugar works well)
3 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
3-4 gloves garlic, crushed

Peanut Sauce:
1 tbsp oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1/4 cup crunch peanut butter
1/2 cup coconut milk
a little lemon or lime juice

This is supposed to serve 4-6, but that's bull. There was only enough for the two of us and we had to have a side as well.

First, trim any fat and sinew from the meat. Cut the meat into 2 cm cubes.

Combine the soy sauce, teriyaki marinade, honey, sherry, and half of the ginger and garlic in a large bowl:

Voila! Marinade. Add the meat cubes and toss to combine. Cover and leave to marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours:

In the meantime, soak wooden skewers in cold water for at least one hour to help prevent them from burning.

To make the peanut sauce: heat the oil in a medium pan. Add the onion and cook over medium heat 2-3 minutes or until soft:

Me, hard at work

Add the remaining ginger, garlic and ground spices and cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat. Stir in the soy sauce, peanut butter and coconut milk. Stir over low heat until smooth:

Add a good squeeze of lemon or lime juice. Reheat gently when needed.

Thread the meat cubes onto skewers. Cook under a preheated grill for 4-5 minutes on each side or until cooked through.

Serve with the warm peanut sauce. I drizzled the peanut sauce over my skewers while Randy had his on the side and dipped the skewers in it. I served it with a spinach salad topped with tomato, raisins, and balsamic vinaigrette:

It was delicious! Filling, tangy,tasty, yum yum. This dish will be a repeat offender on my menu planning for sure. Speaking of menu planning, this meal finished up my menu planning from the most recent load of groceries. What this means is I will have to get experimental with our remininag groceries (or turn to old staples) until it's time to trek out for a big grocery haul once again. Tomorrow I am trying out a chicken ranch pizza with homemade whole wheat dough.

Here's Sebastian helping me plan meals / doing his homework:

Shoutouts from the past few days go to : McDonald's soft serve, homemade peanut butter balls, partridgeberries, and the free sample of Fibre Plus cereal I got in the mail today: