Meatloaf

Can you believe that before this week I had never made meatloaf? I had no idea that it is so easy! I used my grandma's recipe (below) but substituted bison for half the meat (the other half was lean beef) and added a bit of sugar and cinnamon. My amounts were a bit off, too, but close enough. Instead of making one large I took my mom's advice and made 4 small 1/2lb loaves. Because I used lean meat, my loaves didn't hold together very well. Next time I might add an extra egg to help with that. Even though the loaves fell apart, they still tasted great! One loaf seems to be perfect to split between Chris and I for one dinner. I wrapped the extra loaves in foil and froze them, now we have an easy but tasty and healthy dinner that just needs to be defrosted and heated up!

Grandma's Meatloaf
1.5 lb ground chuck or beef
1 large chopped onion
1 small chopped green pepper
1 tsp chili powder
1 cup ketchup, plus extra
1/2 tube crumbled crackers
1/4 tsp pepper
2 tsp salt
1 egg, slightly beaten
8oz tomato sauce

Mix everything together and form into a loaf. Spray baking dish with Pam or line bottom with foil and spray with Pam. Put meatloaf in baking dish. Spread extra ketchup on top.

Bake 350 for 1hr15min. When done, remove loaf with large spatula into another container so that it doesn't sit in grease. cover with foil.

How does your garden grow?

Remember that empty tray of dirt from a few posts ago? Within days we had little plants poking their tops through the soil and since then they have taken off. Chris swears that if you sit and watch them long enough you can see them growing. The peas are now about 4" tall with several pairs of leaves. The beets are very thin and shorter, but have developed their first sets of leaves as well. Everyday they are getting bigger and healthier. I wonder when they will be ready to be planted outside?

The lettuce and onions in the garden are doing well, though its a bit harder to see the change. We also put in three strawberry plants and I'm hoping to have berries to try soon! We have been getting plenty of sunshine and a decent amount of rain- perfect for the garden. Most days, its still a little chilly for me to want to spend much time outside, especially since our yard has so much shade. Its supposed to be warmer later this week, though!

Sewing Projects

You can tell that spring is here because suddenly my blog is active again. Its an accurate representation of how I feel- energized and full of ideas. This week I've been doing a bit of sewing and having a lot of fun with it. I've discovered that the thrift store (i.e. Goodwill) is a great place to find good quality fabric for cheap. For 100% cotton you can't beat men's button up shirts and women's winter skirts are the best for nice wool. Half a dozen men's shirts in shades of blue and yellow are now made up into blocks for a summer quilt. I think I'll even have enough fabric for the backing, so all I'll have to buy new is batting. I think I'll do simple "stitch in the ditch" quilting to go with the patchwork design and not add too much stiffness. I want it to be soft and casual and easy to wrap up in or spread out as a picnic blanket.

I also made a skirt out of one of the smaller shirts- a boy's large, I think. I just cut off the collar and sleeves and sewed up the sleeve openings. The hemming and the buttons down the front were done for me. It feels good to re-use something that's been discarded rather than buy new fabric and its a quick and easy way to make a comfortable, light and easy to wear skirt! I've also been doing some gardening and cooking but I want to get a few more blocks sewn tonight so I'll stop typing for now...

Here comes Spring!!

We have started having the beautiful sunny weather that means that spring will be here soon. Of course the sunny days are mixed in with rain, but at least its not a cold, icy rain anymore. And in between the rain storms we have been able to get the garden cleared out and ready for the spring planting. Its still a bit early for most plants but we put the onions and red lettuce in today- hopefully they won't be bothered by cool nights too much. We also put a strawberry plant in a pot so it can be taken in if it gets too cold, and to keep it from getting moldy if it gets too wet. While we wait for it to warm up we have seeds starting inside- beets and peas. We planted them on March 11th and hope to see signs of life in about a week.