Knock their socks off meat loaf
This is a good menu to have with meat loaf, and when you are already heating the oven ,you might as well take advantage of it.
Meat loaf with sweet tomato sauce
Scalloped Potatoes
Candied Carrots (or a vegetable of your choice)
Dinner rolls. I like the brown and serve, they only take a short time to bake, while you are getting your other food put on their serving bowls or plates the buns can be baking and ready to eat by the time your table is set.
For every day meals I don't plan a dessert that takes
time to make, I save the pie making and other desserts for holidays or for
Sunday or whenever you want a meal to be a little more special. For
an everyday dessert I count on cookies, ice cream, sherbet, canned fruits
etc., etc..
Meat loaf (serves 4 )
1 1/2 lbs ground beef I like the ground meat that is around 80% you can use ground beef in the 70% fat range just drain the fat off after baking
2 eggs(slightly beaten)
1/2 tube saltine crackers crushed
1/2 cup oatmeal
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground pepper
1/2 small onion chopped or 1 teaspoon onion powder or use onion salt in place of the
regular.salt.
Mix together all ingredients and shape into a loaf, or make a nice rounded shape by pressing the top down to make it a little flat.
Mix a 1/2
cup ketchup(if you don't have ketchup on hand tomato sauce will work) with 1 tablespoon mustard and 1/4 cup brown sugar in a small bowl then spread it over your meat loaf. Sprinkle top with salt and pepper for taste. Bake in preheated oven for 45minutes at 350 degrees.
Now lets not be silly, when I say 1/2 cup crackers and 1/2 cup oatmeal, that doesn't mean it wont turn out just as well if you use all cracker, or all oatmeal, or bread crumbs even, its just what I prefer, but it will work in any combination.
Scalloped Potatoes
To make life easier buy scalloped potatoes in the box. Follow
the oven cooking directions on the box and then turn them into your own
invention, by adding flavor to them. You can buy a jar of cheese whiz or
just grate up some cheese you have on hand and add it to. Any kind of
cheese will do. I like to use canned milk instead of regular milk
as I think they get a little creamier, you can add sour cream, left
over bacon crunched up, pieces of pepperoni, ham, just about
anything use your imagination. If you like them a little juicier, add
a little more milk then what the directions call for, but add it at
the end of baking so you know if it needs it or not. To serve put a couple
slices of cheese on top to make it look nice, or crumble some bread
crumbs, cereal,or even instant mashed potatoes dabbed with butter or
margarine.
Candied
Carrots
Candied Carrots are fast and
easy to make. Simply heat two cans of carrots until they come to a
boil, then turn the burner to low, drain off the juice and add
1/2 cup brown sugar, 3 tablespoons butter or margarine, stir together and
heat on low for about 10 minutes stirring occasionally. Serve in a nice
bowl topped with a sprinkle of salt and pepper.