Roasted vegetable and balsamic glazed meatloaf

My inspiration for this dish is found here. Thanks to Bobby Flay I have been inspired to make this amazingly delicious meatloaf. Because I put my own touches on this recipe I am going to go ahead and write my version down here.

1 red bell pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
2 carrots
1/2 large onion
1 Tbsp. of garlic made into a paste(about 5-6 cloves mashed with salt)
salt and pepper
3 lbs. ground beef
2 c. cooked quinoa
3 eggs
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried parsley(opt.), or a few Tbsp. fresh parsley(opt.)
1/2 c. parmesan cheese
1 c. ketchup(no high fructose corn syrup)
1/2 c. balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes divided in half



Start off by preparing quinoa, 1 c. water and 1/2 c. quinoa bring to a boil and simmer for 15-20 minutes. Start chopping the veggies, shredding the carrots and mashing the garlic to a paste. Saute in a pan with a few Tbsp. of extra virgin olive oil. Saute for about 5-10 minutes or until a little before it's soft.While the veggies are cooking combine your ketcup, balsamic vinegar, paprika and a pinch of the garlic paste and half the red pepper flakes, set aside.

When the veggies are done put them in a separate bowl and put them in the fridge to help them cool.

In a large bowl beat the eggs with the thyme and parsley

Now combine everything in the bowl + 1/2 c. of the ketchup-balsamic sauce

Mix together until everthing is entirely incorporated

Split into 4 loaves and form onto a super greased foil lined baking sheet

Cook on 425* for 30 minutes and turn down to 350 for 30 more minutes


Serve with potatoes and veggies.

Rating: So seriously this meatloaf was so tasty. I know I varied from the original recipe but Bobby Flay still deserves the credit. This meatloaf didn't have the prettiest presentation because it was super moist but if presentation doesn't matter to you then this is a great meatloaf. The balsamic glaze was absolutely divine on this and very critical to the overall taste of the dish. I opted to do carrots in place of zucchini because really zucchini isn't that good and doesn't contain to much nutrition. I also added onion because I think they pack important flavor for something like meatloaf and meatloaf just wouldn't be meatloaf without onions. I also opted to use quinoa as opposed to bread crumbs. I think it was an excellent decision and it's healthier then bread crumbs. If you wanna know more about quinoa google it. It is a seed that is a protein. Over all I would give this recipe a 9.5. I cannot give it a 10 because I know I could improve it. But it was great and I would make it again(when money allows of course).

Sami's chicken corn chowder

This one was seriously a good one. SO good.

4 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 savory rotisserie chicken(we used lemon pepper)
3 medium sized Idaho potatoes
3 medium sized carrots
1 large onion
2 garlic cloves
2 cans chicken broth
1 tsp dried thyme
4 Tbsp. butter
1/2 c. flour
1 qt. container half and half
3-4 c. fresh corn(cut off the cob)
salt and pepper to taste

Chop up the onion into relatively small bite size pieces. Place in a large pot on medium high heat with the olive oil and saute. Chop up carrots into about 1/4 inch pieces and add to the pot. Continue sauteing for about 5 minutes or until onions are translucent. About the last minute add the garlic and stir so it doesn't burn. Pour in the all of the chicken broth. Dice the potatoes into 1/4 inch pieces and add to the pot. Add salt to taste. Bring the stock to a boil. At some point while it is boiling add the thyme. Boil for about 10 minutes or until the carrots and potatoes are tender to the fork.

While the pot is boiling in a separate sauce pan melt the butter. Once the butter is melted add add the flour to make a roux. Whisk for a bout a minute and add the half and half. Stir until the half and half gets warm and then pour into the pot. The chowder should now look really creamy. If you haven't already remove the corn from the cob(probably about 6 ears of corn) and add to the pot. Remove the meat from the breast of the rotisserie chicken, shred and add to the pot. Add salt and pepper to taste. Let the chicken and corn heat through with the rest of the contents for about 10-15 more minutes. Serve immediately. This would be good with some crusty french bread.

Because this was inspired by two recipes I found on the food network I'm going to go ahead and rate this. You can find those inspiration here and here. I love that I added chicken to the recipe. I think it is great. I really haven't had corn chowder before this but I was completely in love with this dish. I think I'd give it a 9.9. I hesitate to give anything a 10 unless it is absolutely the BEST thing I ever ate of that particular dish but I don't think there is to much I could personally do to improve this. I loved it.

Tomatillo Soup

I found this recipe on a website that I happened across that focuses on healthy dinners. I've tried a few of the recipe's and this one is by FAR my favorite. I think tomatillos are so under-appreciated. They are so delicious and I really enjoyed this recipe. You can find the recipe here. It is suggested to serve with avocado which we did not use because I hate them and Mark is mildly allergic to them. But we did serve with pico and instead of tortilla strips we used tortilla chips because we like the crunch. We also gave it a nice dollop of sour cream which really goes well with the tanginess of the soup. I would rate this soup a 9.5. I don't give it a 10 because I think it is possible that I could make some improvements to it.

Green Chicken Curry

Because this recipe isn't mine and I didn't alter it to be my own at all I will just link you to the recipe here.

I thought I would also take the opportunity to rate all the new recipes I try on a scale from 1-10 with a little explanation as to why.

Ok, so I have never actually tried real Indian food before so this was a first. I have nothing to compare it to so I am rating this with my immature(Indian) pallet. I was actually pretty unsure looking at the list of ingredients as to how this recipe would turn out but I was pleasantly surprised with how well everything worked together. Every ingredient in the green curry was there to compliment the other ingredients. None of the flavors overpowered the others with maybe the exception of the cilantro being the most noticeable flavor. That being said the spices were a little strong. Eating to much of this at one time would probably be to much for me and make me sick. So did I like the meal? Yes. Will I make this meal again anytime soon? Probably not. Mark and I agreed that if this were to be served over basmati rice it would probably be an 8 but we had it with flatbread(naan) so we are giving it a 8 1/2.