Comfort Food

Today, I pulled out an all-time favourite recipe from our recipe collection. It's one of the first recipes I learned from watching different cooking shows on TV, when I was left on my own, while MDH was in grad school. It was our first year as married couple. It was also the beginning of the many trials and errors I did in the kitchen. It helped that I have a very supportive, encouraging housemate a.k.a. MDH. I was never afraid to try things in the kitchen 'cause everything I prepared was always well appreciated. It still is up to now btw.

I can't exactly remember which show did I learn the recipe. It was an Italian cooking show, sometime in the mid-90's. I'm sure it wasn't Caprial's Cafe 'cause I think she only did cakes and pastries in her show.

Tonight, over meatloaf and mashed potatoes (and apple juice :)), we reminisced our first year in Ottawa, in the first apartment that we rented, in the first kitchen where I learned to cook for the 2 most important boys in my life. The apartment was MDK's first home btw.

So here's the recipe. Hope the wafting smell of the meatloaf will bring comfort in your kitchen same way it does in ours.

Ingredients

* 2 pounds lean ground beef (I sometimes use a mix of ground pork and beef or ground veal)
* 1 cup milk
* 2 eggs
* 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
* 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 1 medium onion, chopped
* 1 celery, sliced into small pieces
* 1 medium bell pepper, sliced into small pieces
* 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
* 1 cup bread crumbs

* 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
* 1/2 cup ketchup

* bacon strips


Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a rectangular pan. (I used an 8 X 12 pan)
2. Saute the onions, celery, and bell pepper.
3. In a mixing bowl, mix thoroughly the sauted veggies and the other remaining ingredients, except for the brown sugar, ketchup and bacon strips. Shape the mixture into a loaf on the rectangular pan.
4. Arrange the bacon strips on top of the loaf.
5. In a separate bowl, mix the ketchup and brown sugar. Spread on top of the loaf.
6. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour or until juices are clear.