Meatloaf Surprise

Just a warning. If you are friends with me on Facebook. I will be listening to a song by Justin Beiber on spotify. It will definitely pop up in your invasion-of-privacy-updates and it will be accurate.

I can't help it.

I love Justin Beiber.

I have Beiber Fever. And I'm not going to be ashamed about it. Plus, I don't think there's a sane person in this world that can hear that As long as you love me song and not sing along with it.

That's what I tell Zach all the time, it's fine if you don't prefer pop music or whatever, but there is a part of you that likes it. It's true with all catchy music. It's catchy for a reason.

So. Don't judge me.

:)

And I am always telling Zach that when that Call Me Maybe song comes on, because seriously, you cannot NOT fall in love with that song. It's like cocaine for our eardrums.

Also, in case you were offended by my Facebook dig earlier... I don't really care that every single song I listen to is being posted in a stream of documentation of my life... really I don't! :) I know what I signed up for and I understand the consequences of using social media.

Ok, that being said, WHY does spotify have to link to facebook???? I mean, I watched the movie... I get that they're friends and all.... but I don't want to admit to half the stuff I listen to.

I'm way too eclectic for my own good and if I want to sample some hard core rap songs than I don't think my entire Facebook friends list needs to see that. Or is that just me???

The great, fantastic, amazing thing about Spotify is that you can listen to all that music, mesh it into all kinds of playlists and never have to buy a single song.

I love Justin Beiber, but lets get real, I'm not going to pay to listen to him. I just want to throw some of his pop-y teenage love songs into my writing playlists and use his inspiration to write good makeout scenes.

And I don't want it advertised across the internet.

I'm totally still going to use it, but I am probably going to complain about it too. Just an FYI.

:)

So... for those of you who read this blog in hopes of writing new and not just the craziness that is in my head... I have an exciting announcement coming out on MONDAY!!! Stay tuned.

You'll want to be here.

I promise.

And for those of you who read this blog for everything else in my life that has nothing to do with writing....

I failed at dinner last night.

Failed.

Like if I was being graded and we were using Mrs. Knudson's 9th grade Science Class grading scale I would have received an F - -

Yes.

An F minus minus.

She believed in really hammering in the point when we performed poorly.

Also... that was a terrible class and I didn't learn anything. I probably, definitely deserved all of the F minus minuses I got.

She was a step up from our 8th grade science teacher though.... She believed Prince Charles was the antichrist and made us watch videos on the lockness monster, big foot and how civilization used computers and today's technology before the Flood.

You're super jealous of my education aren't you????

I thought so.

Anyway.

Back to the failure that was dinner last night.

Zach cut his hours back at his job to part time so that I could have time to write. I'm actually going after this like a real career and so Zach watches the kids for the majority of the day while I tap away at the computer in between newborn baby needs... Which is not a whole lot of time....

But that's a different blog.

Ok, so because I am actually getting work done during the day, I have been much, much, much better about making dinner in the evenings.

I mean, let's get real... there were a few months where I had not cooked one meal. Zach had totally taken over the kitchen duties.

Best husband ever!!!!

But he was also still working. So after the baby, I made a definite effort to get back into housewife duties. (Don't tell my laundry that... but in every other area I made a strong effort!!!)

So I've been meal planning and working at being consistent with dinners. PLUS. I need a break from writing.... I am a little concerned with becoming a complete hunchback and I know I need other activity.

Also, while this is going on, I go out to lunch on Thursdays with my Bible Study ladies at a supermarket here. Well, a lot of the ladies love the stores meatloaf.

Say what??

I know!!

Meatloaf!

Can you believe it?? I thought it was strange.. Especially since I have never walked in anywhere and gone, "You know what? I'm so in the mood for meatloaf!"

But they swear by it.

And I have nothing against meatloaf. I actually like it a lot. So I came home and told Zach the store and how they were raving about it thinking he would absolutely think that was crazy.

I mean seriously, I haven't made a meatloaf in five years because Zach told me once that he hates it.

But this particular time, he goes, "huh, I'd like to actually try a really good recipe for one. I used to hate it as a kid, but I bet I would like it now."

I of course... well, after I picked my jaw up off the floor... I stored the little bit of information away and added it to my meal plan this week.

I researched meatloafs. Studied the best recipes and found one that I thought we would love.

Not to mention the recipe came from the Pioneer Woman and is entitled My Favorite Meatloaf.

Pretty sure you can't go wrong there. Especially since over the weekend I made her Meatball Sliders for Game Night at our house and people were seriously raving about them. They stopped the game to eat the entire pan of them... I mean, I hate to brag, but they were a HUGE success.

Meatloaf is basically the same thing, right????

Wrong.

So. So. So. Wrong.

The first sign of trouble came when I misread how long it would take me to cook the darn thing. So when I finally put it in the oven, i realized it would take twice as long as I originally thought it would. Which pushed dinner a whole half and hour later.

But I made it exactly to PW's specifications and it was cooking. I did the dishes, gave the baby a bath, set the table and then started making the side dishes: Mashed Potatoes, Gravy and Corn.

A little carb-heavy, but it's dinner. It's got to get the kids through the night and to breakfast and Zach and I have been dieting so all of our other meals have been tiny, healthy and all around unsatisfying... :)

So, the potatoes get going, the corn is in the pot and I start on the gravy.

Well.... we drink Almond Milk. I don't keep regular milk in the house and I rarely let my kids drink it. I mean, I'm not completely crazy, they can get a chocolate milk if we're out to dinner... but the majority of their calcium comes from Almond Milk.

You can't make gravy with Almond Milk.

Besides the fact that it really, really, really weirds me out. And a friend of ours is constantly reminding us that Almonds don't make milk, so it's technically Almost Juice, it tastes a little bit sweeter than regular cows milk.

You can't use it for gravy.

Plus it thickens quicker anyway and I just new I would have problems if I tried.

At first I had decided to scrap the idea for gravy, but then I noticed a pint of Half and Half on my top refrigerator shelf that we had used for White Russians.

I needed to use up the rest of the milk before it went bad, plus it's cows milk, it would obviously be awesome for gravy. Right.....???

Wrong.

Oh. So. Wrong.

Unless you want a kind of flour-y dessert gravy that tastes like a hot milk paste.

NEVER use half and half for gravy.

Ever.

It was so awful...

The family got over it quickly though, because if you know anything about my cooking it's that I rarely ever have all the ingredients I need and am famous for improvising. I mean, I once substituted baking soda and lemon juice in place of Mountain Dew.

I thought it was genius at the time....

And hey that one worked.

But my family is used to it and sometimes things work out for me and sometimes not so much...

Plus, we usually just use ranch dressing on our potatoes and so I didn't feel to bad.

I moved everything to the table, minus the gravy, cut into the meatloaf and it. was. raw.

COMPLETELY RAW!!!!

I mean, so inedible. Which meant meatloaf was out for the kiddos since dinner had taken me twice as long as I originally planned.

They got to eat a very healthy, well balanced meal of corn, potatoes and bread.

Yep, mom of the year award right here folks....

I'm pretty sure Stryker mumbled something like, "Don't you ever serve me that kind of slop again lady" before I tucked him and his overly-carbed tummy into bed.

The meatloaf finally did finish cooking and HOUR AND A HALF later... At a higher temp mind you and so Zach and I sat down to eat it.

I thought, Aw, how sweet, we'll have this nice romantic little meatloaf date.

Nevermind that the potatoes and corn are cold and since I don't use the microwave we're just going to have to eat them this way. And don't mind that I ran out of good ranch and we're going to have to use the crappy ranch I bought on accident because the grave could permanently glue Stella's school projects together. We are having a date and that's all that matters!

So.... I dished us up. We tried the meatloaf.

And then we gagged.

Oh my word. It was so bad. Words cannot even accurately described.

Zach almost wasn't able to swallow his bite.

It was the worst thing I have ever made. And I have made a LOT of bad things in my life.

It was so bad we through the entire 2 lbs. of hamburger monstrosity away and I ran out to get us 45 cent wings from BWWs.

Let it be said, I ADORE the Pioneer Woman, but if I ever have to suffer through her favorite meatloaf again I may just lose my mind completely.

Or at the very least my taste buds. They will for sure just get up and leave.

Which reminds me of that Sonic Commercial that I die laughing at every single time I see it.

"They're not my taste buds. They're my taste bros..."

Ah! Love it!!!

Rachel

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3 comments:

  1. So excited for Monday!!!

    As for the meatloaf, I had a disaster of my own once. Sad thing is that the recipe is actually a really good one. I am just so bad at cooking that it didn't turn out at all.

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  2. I make mine in the crockpot. It's a super easy recipe and you just let it go and do it's thing all day. Yum!

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  3. If you go on Spotify and click the "edit" button on the top left, then click "preferences" on the bottom, you have an option to uncheck the box of "Show what I listen to on Facebook." Therefore, your Facebook feed will no longer know what you are listening to and when! :)

    Just as an FYI.

    ReplyDelete