Last Sunday afternoon we shared a wonderful meal with our friend, Carl, who has been a friend of our family for many years. He wanted to treat us to his special meatloaf. He put it together and brought it here, and then he and I cooked for the next two hours together to create a feast for the family.
Carl made the biggest and most delicious meatloaf, ever! He prepared it in this stainless steel chafing dish which just fit into my full-sized oven. Here is his general recipe: 5 pounds of ground meat, a reg. can of tomato sauce, a small can of tomato paste, a bag of carrots cut into "matchsticks" which are available in the produce section, onions, green peppers and MUSHROOMS (mmmmm!) all sauteed together, 6 pieces of bread including the crusts, torn into pieces, some milk and spices and probably some bread crumbs. This is all I remember. After baking it uncovered for an hour and a half, he applied the topping which is ketchup mixed with brown sugar. This baked on for another 15 minutes or so.
He also happened to bring a family-sized package of chicken drumsticks! These he rinsed in a colander, patted dry and gently agitated in a plastic bag containing "Autry's Chicken Breader".
In Crisco shortening, Carl allowed the chicken to fry for about 45 minutes or so, turning carefully every 15 minutes.
When it was finished cooking, Carl asked if we happened to have any honey! I just started to buy honey again because I love it on toast for breakfast. He poured this over the fried chicken.
Right about now the house was smelling Fantastic, driving the neighbors crazy, no doubt!
When the chicken was finished, Carl began to prepare his "Orange-Glazed Carrots".The carrots were actually canned, sliced carrots which I didn't even know you could buy. In a separate saucepan, Carl heated up orange juice and sugar.When it boiled, creating an orange syrup, he added a quarter cup of corn starch mixed in water using a whisk.
Cinnamon and Nutmeg were added to the glaze.
He drained the cooked carrots and slowly added the thickened orange glaze to them.
My portion of the dinner was easier! I made Roasted Red Potatoes with Rosemary cooked in a little olive oil and salt and pepper. These always turn out very well.
By Carl's special request, I also made Collard Greens and Bacon.These were the best I have ever made because the collards were so tender and fresh- it was like they were "Spring" greens.
Many of the kids showed up for this incredible feast and we had a large tablefull.
I thoroughly enjoyed cooking with Carl.Wearing our aprons, we talked for two hours about food and life. I forgot to take a picture of the desserts I had ready. One was Lemon Poundcake made with a pound of butter, 10 eggs and 3 fresh lemons and the other was our family favorite, Fat Man's Delight.You can be sure that we all ate too much of this fabulous feast. Thank you, Carl, for your wonderful gift of food, time, and talent. It was a meal and an afternoon that we will all remember.
