Taste Test #2: Meatloaf

Brownies didn't happen today. Instead, I went the savory route. I used a Deceptively Delicious recipe idea, but with my own twist. Basically, I used my own BBQ meatloaf recipe in place of the Italian meatloaf recipe in the book. Charlie does like my meatloaf, and it's a flavor he is familiar with, so I thought I had a good chance of him eating it. The book calls for pureed carrots in the meatloaf, so that was the big change to my recipe. Basically, it's ground beef, bread crumbs, evaporated milk, salt and pepper, and I added a half cup of pureed carrots. I make individual little meatloaf loaves, top with BBQ sauce that I make (ketchup, vinegar, beef bouillon, brown sugar over low heat) and cook for about 45 minutes or an hour at 350.

The carrots were the first thing I actually pureed with my newly bought ninja. I took fresh carrots, peeled them and sliced into manageable chunks, and popped in the steamer basket of my big pasta pot for a few minutes, until fork tender. Then I popped them into the individual portion cup of the ninja, and pulsed. Looking back, I probably should have used the larger reservoir for the ninja instead of the individual portion cup, and I should have pulsed....differently. I thought the carrots were smooth, but when I actually went to put them in the meatloaf, they seemed chunkier than I expected, and ended up a little more visible. No worries, I thought, they will blend in once cooked.

A side note here - when I saw half cup pureed veggies I thought...well that is not very much. He's getting what, an eighth of that at best in the recipe. I'm going to have to get him to eat six hidden veggie items a day to get in anything worth having! But in practice, like seven large carrots ended up being like a cup of puree - it really condensed. I felt better about how much he was getting as a result.

Anyway, I popped in the oven before picking Charlie up this afternoon (I had today off) and when I pulled them out an hour later....I could still see the carrots. Oh no.

Dinner started like this:
Charlie: Are those onions? You know I don't like onions in meatloaf.
Mommy: No, I didn't use any onions.
C: Are you sure?
M: I absolutely, 100%, promise, cross my heart I did not put any onions in that meatloaf. (he, he, he)

He ate it and said it was good! He did question the orange "onions" once more and I had to play it off, but he ate the entire portion I wanted him to eat. He earned a cookie (a REAL cookie, not a chickpea cookie, alas), and is currently refusing that because I won't also give him m&m's.

I consider this a win, even though he is whining on the floor boycotting what he wants because I won't give him what else he wants. Kids!