Monthly Archives: January 2015

A Healthy Take – On My Italian Style Meatloaf

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True comfort food even with this healthier version.

True comfort food even with this healthier version.

The challenge of this contest amongst Epicurious Community Table bloggers is to take a recipe previously published in the Community Table and give it a healthier make over. The original recipe featured ground pork, veal and beef. It also had a whole egg, mozzarella and thick full fat Caesar salad dressing. This lighter version is amazingly tasty! Serve with whole grain pasta.

Ingredients:

  • 2 pounds ground chicken (white meat)
  • 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs (seasoned)
  • 1 cup Parmesan cheese
  • 1/3 cup low-fat Caesar salad dressing
  • 1 cup low-fat skim mozzarella cheese (shredded)
  • 1 egg white
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 1 tablespoon dried parsley
  • 8 ounces marinara sauce

Directions:

  1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degree F.
  2. In a large bowl, combine chicken, panko crumbs, Parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, parsley, oregano, egg, garlic and Caesar dressing until combined, but don’t over mix it.
  3. I suggest you line a baking dish with non-stick aluminum foil, for easier clean-up.
  4. Form meat mixture into a mound shape and place it in a large enough baking dish that there is space all around it.
  5. Use one cup of marinara sauce to coat the meat loaf mound on all sides except the bottom.
  6. Bake meatloaf for one hour, 15 minutes or until fully cooked through.
  7. Heat remaining sauce up in microwave at 1 minute, 30 seconds.
  8. Slice meatloaf and drizzle sauce on top.

Preparation Time: 15 minutes.

Cook Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Servings: 8-10

Happy New Year!

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Happy New Year celebrations from early childhood took place at my maternal great grandmother’s house. My grandmother lived with her mother and father in the Logan section of Philadelphia in a semi-detached house that if I stood in the third floor back room on a chair, I could see Willie Penn’s hat. Back then, no building in Philadelphia could be higher than the William Penn statue on top of City Hall in Center City. They had a box full of flashy and colorful party hats, noise makers and horns to ring in the New Year. Our family is small in relation to other families. My sister and I were the only children present as my cousins that were about our age lived in Harrisburg, PA area. Our Cousin Ken, Cousin Marion, Aunt Alice, Uncle Wilfred, our grandmother, great grandparents and our parents were there on New Year’s Eve to celebrate the new year. We would play what they referred to as parlour games why waiting for the feast at midnight. When it came close to midnight my sister and I would hand out the hats and noise makers. I think, we listened to the count down on the radio. The feast consisted of cold cuts which we made our own sandwiches on various types of breads. Dessert was dark chocolate and banana ice cream. The chocolate needed the banana as a compliment as it was extremely rich, and the banana was almost too sweet without the chocolate. Mixed together they were amazing. Great memories!