Sunday Supper

Once again, I woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't fall back asleep. This is getting tiresome. Once I did finally sleep, I slept until 7:30 AM.

I was wearing my bathrobe, so I started the one load of laundry for this weekend. I wrote and posted the Blog entry, looked at the mess in the kitchen from last night's dinner and went and sat on the couch, listening to Sunday Morning Over Easy and enjoying the sunshine.

I was reading that book again, so I missed the drier shutting off. I recovered by wetting a kitchen towel in hot water, throwing it in the drier with another fabric softener sheet and running it for ten more minutes. This usually releases any inherent wrinkles. Then I hung up my shirts and pants and folded the rest of the clothes.

I went back to the book...

I fixed a grapefruit for my late breakfast. Delicious! Then I finally cleaned up the kitchen.

I went back to the book...

For my late lunch, I sliced the last piece out of that French bread loaf, cut it in half and made another Cuban sandwich. This time I went back to yellow mustard on both sides of the bread. I buttered both outsides and stuck it in the grill. I plated it with a side of the coleslaw.

It was a much-easier to eat sandwich! And the coleslaw was good too. The tartness of the Granny Smith apple played well with the sweetness of the cabbage.

I went back to the book...

I finished the first book around 4:00 PM, just before my granddaughter Riese called. She wanted to know if I would sponsor her March of Dimes Drive. You pledge a dollar amount for every book they read. I said sure.

I am so naive with women (of all ages). I said I'd give her a buck for each book, but she should read slowly! She said she already has read 23 books! (Groan... this is gonna cost me!)

At 5:00 PM, my friend B___ called; we discussed a lot of things and then settled on our Sunday dinners. He's making roasted pork with caramelized pears, rice and steamed asparagus. He about gagged when I told him mine: BBQ Turkey meatloaf.

Now, I admit, I am prejudiced against ground turkey, myself. This is a result of Lu introducing it into our diet, way back in the Palms Road days. She claimed you couldn't tell it from ground beef in burgers and chili. Bullshit!

But they had a three pound roll of it on sale at Kroger's a while back, so I bought it and stuck it in the chest freezer. I figured it was time to use it or lose it.

About 6:00 PM, I started to make dinner. Now this is a variation on a Neely's recipe. But, I didn't make up their homemade BBQ seasoning or their BBQ sauce. I used store bought.

In a large bowl I mixed one tablespoon of BBQ seasoning, one teaspoon Old Bay crab boil seasoning, three tablespoons of soy sauce, one large egg lightly beaten, one cup of BBQ sauce and one teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce.

In a saute pan over medium-high heat I put in some olive oil. Then I added one cup of chopped red onion, one chopped medium red bell pepper, salt, pepper and two cloves of chopped garlic. I stirred that until tender and then added it to the wet mix.

Then I added the two pounds of turkey I needed (the other pound went back in the freezer) and 1 1/2 cups of breadcrumbs. I mixed it all together with my hands and then formed it into a loaf on a sheet tray.

The oven was preheated to 350 degrees F. and I baked it for 35 minutes. Then I removed it, drizzled another half-cup of BBQ sauce on top and baked it for 20 more minutes.

While it was baking, I peeled and cooked some parsnips for my side dish.

When everything was ready, I gave it a try. Hmmm... not too bad. The BBQ taste wasn't as overpowering as I thought it might be. Texture's a little soft, though. It will never replace a ground beef meatloaf (in my eyes anyway) but it was a nice alternative.

My first Sunday show was preempted by the Oscars, so I watched taped shows until Iron Chef America came on. Then I went to bed.