Rosie's Meatloaf.

I had a leftover pound of ground beef and a leftover pound of ground pork from my Cabbage Rolls. So ... in addition to my Galumpkis, I'm making MEATLOAF tonight. Now, everybody has their own recipe for meatloaf. It's like everybody has their own recipe for potato salad. Or cole slaw. Or deviled eggs. Or mac 'n' cheese. And pretty much all of these would be considered comfort foods. As I've written before, I probably shouldn't even like meatloaf, given my meatloaf history. I refused to eat cafeteria food since the first day in first grade, when I took one smell and taste of the offerings at Forest Hills Elementary School, turned my nose up, and said, "Screw this crap!" From the next day forward, for 12 years, my mother packed me a lunch bag with a meatloaf sandwich on white bread with butter. Five days a week. Did I mention for 12 years? It was heaven to me. And still, to this day, a meatloaf sandwich holds a special place in my heart and in my gastronomic history and future.

Here are my ingredients: leftover 1 pound ground beef leftover 1/2 pound ground pork 2 eggs the last vestige of green pepper onion Lipton Onion Soup Mix Hunt's Seasoned Meatloaf Sauce Yes, I am semi-ho-ing this up with the soup mix and the sauce. salt and pepper

First, I hand mixed the pork and beef.

I added in half the pack of Lipton Onion Soup Mix.

Minced green peppers went in.

Minced onion went in.

And half the can of Hunt's Meatloaf Sauce went in.

Next, two beaten eggs were added.

And I mixed everything by hand.

Finally, I crushed half a packet of Ritz crackers into the meat mixture.

And spread it evenly into a loaf pan.

The meatloaf went into a 350 degree oven for thirty minutes, then I drained the grease out. Twenty more minutes, and I poured more grease out. Another ten minutes and I drained it again. And poured the rest of the Hunt's Sauce over top.

Back into the oven for 10 more minutes and let it set for maybe 20 minutes before slicing.

In the meantime, I made mashed potatoes. I just cooked diced potatoes then added butter, cream, salt and pepper, and more butter. Did I mention buttah?

This was delicio ... very comforting. Creamy, rich chunks of buttery mashed potatoes and the wonderful down-home familiarity of meatloaf. I can't wait until tomorrow, when the meatloaf has been sitting in the fridge overnight. The texture will be totally different. Tight. Condensed. Together. Smooth. Not crumbly like it is now. Pate-ish. I love meatloaf. I think I'll marry it.