I scream, you scream we all scream for....meatloaf?

So while I was writing a touching story of my children's expression of love for their meat, it dawned on me.  Maybe I should capture the recipe I used, ok, made up that went over so well.

I can't vouch for the tastiness of the recipe since I don't eat meat, but I can say that my children do not always vocalize their love for a meal with this level of intensity.  Seriously, I'm feeling a little displaced in their hearts right now. 

Lovable Meatloaf

1 lb ground pork

1.5 lbs ground lean beef (15% fat)

1 tsp dry thyme (I would have used 1/4 chopped fresh parsley, but I forgot to buy it)

4 slices of good quality whole wheat bread

1 large onion

2 carrots (biggish ones, not the small ones in your pack of carrots)

3 garlic cloves

Kosher salt

pepper

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 large egg

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.

In your food processor (side note-expect A LOT of recipes to include this step since I got my new food processor for my birthday - thanks Mr. Dog!  Seriously, that thing is awesome.) chop your onion, garlic and carrot into smallish pieces.  Sure you could do this with a knife, but the food processor is so much more fun!  Once it is all kind of chopped up, dump it in a big bowl.  Put your bread into the food processor and process it into largish sized crumbs.  Dump this into the bowl too.  Add the thyme and a few big pinches of salt, a few grinds of pepper and mix all of this together.  Add your meat and mix it until it is pretty well mixed with the food processored ingredients.  Add your egg and Worcestershire sauce, and mix that in.  

Line a baking sheet with parchment.  Use a loaf pan to form the meat mixture into a loaf.  I'll be pretty big, but trust me, if your kids like it as much as my kids do, you'll welcome the leftovers.

Bake for about 45 minutes, maybe longer, until a meat thermometer inserted in the middle of the loaf reads 155 degrees.  Let it sit for about 10 minutes before slicing and serving.  

I guess it could be bat.

There are things I think the kids will never agree to eat.  Last week it was mussels, this week it was bat.  Not real bat.  Fish that I called bat, really, but they thought it was bat.  Turns out these guys will eat just about anything.  But it was good.  Even if I was calling it bat.

Fish masquerading as bat

3 good sized tilapia fillets (I don't normally like tilapia either, just humor me)

1/2 all purpose flour

1 tsp kosher salt

2 Tbsp butter

2 Tbsp capers, drained and rinsed

1/3 cup lemon juice

On a dinner plate or shallow pan mix the flour and salt.  Dredge the tilapia fillets.  In a frying pan, melt 1 Tbsp of butter and pan fry your tilapia fillets.  They cook pretty quickly.  A few minutes on each side should do it but it really depends on the thickness of the fillets.  Once the fillets are cooked, take them out of the pan and set them aside.  Add 1 Tbsp of butter to the pan, toss in the capers and the lemon juice and cook over high heat until reduced.  It will be a couple of table spoons of really tangy sauce.  Once it is reduce, top the fillets with the sauce and serve.

I like this combo with broccoli, but a salad or green beans would also be a nice side.  For us thee fillets makes enough to have both the boys and Mr. Dog asking for more at the end of the meal.  They're big eaters.  I think next time I'll make 4 fillets and it should be enough.  You don't have to tell them it's bat.  But you can.