The Joy of Cooking

Meatloaf- what could be more American than that? I am rustling up dinner tonight and turned to my new cookbook, The Joy of Cooking. It is a classic of modern American cooking that my mom gave to me (well, technically us) for our engagement, just as her mother gave it to her. It is truly a seminal cookbook as it explains everything from the most ordinary kitchen techniques and dishes to very complicated ones. The book is perfect for those times when you know what you want but aren't quite sure how to make it, or need to look up the quantities of ingredients. It's not too bad for handy recipes too.

I knew I wanted to make meatloaf tonight and knew what I had seen my mom and dad put in it before, but I turned to my trusty old cookbook friend for exact guidance. Turns out my memory of the dish and the cookbook are really similar!

Here's the modified Joy of Cooking meatloaf recipe for a quick American dinner on a weeknight:

1 pound ground beef/mince meat

1-2 eggs, depending on how eggy you want it to be

1/2-3/4 bread crumbs

3 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

half a chopped onion or dash from a package of onion soup mix

salt

pepper

I also like the suggestion of adding ketchup, barbeque sauce, mustard or horseradish to the mixture, though I usually just add ketchup or barbeque sauce on top.

I also will serve fresh green beans, french fries and have peanut butter cookies for dessert. I went all out for tonight's American dinner.

**Sorry for the lack of pictures but I used an older camera as my regular one wasn't around, and now all the pictures have come out fuzzy. When I make meatloaf again, I'll show you what it looks like! **