Bacon-topped Meatloaf

I hated meatloaf as a child.  It just seemed "icky".  I don't know what was wrong with my taste buds as a child.  They were whacked!

Now, I love meatloaf!  I also love bacon and have seen pictures of many things wrapped in bacon, including a meatloaf or two.

I planned meatloaf for dinner this week and had a few strips of bacon in the fridge... I decided to give it a try!

I made my standard meatloaf recipe and then, attempted a bacon lattice on top.  (If I do it again, I would go with thin bacon - I like crispy bacon and this thick bacon did not crisp up very much and the bacon overwhelmed the taste of the meatloaf).

My husband asked if I took pictures...and I said, yes, I had taken pictures.  He felt it was blog worthy so I'll post

Bacon-topped Meatloaf
Printable Recipe Here

Ingredients:

1/2 cup seasoned croutons - crushed

1/2 cup milk or half and half (may need more - adjust as needed)

1/2 large red onion, small diced 

1/4 large red bell pepper, small diced (remove seeds and any white on the inside)

3 to 4 cloves crushed garlic (grind to paste with kosher salt or use a garlic press)

2 large eggs

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

1 tsp yellow mustard

2 tsp Worstershire sauce

2 to 4 tbsp catsup

1 heaping teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1 1/2 pounds ground beef (I used 90% lean)

Extra catsup for top of meatloaf before bacon

7 slices sliced bacon

(I would use thin sliced if I was doing it again - the thick bacon

was too thick to get "crispy", which is how I imagined this topping)

Method:

Cover a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and set aside.

In a large, wide-mouth mixing bowl, combine crushed croutons with milk or half and half.  Add more if it sucks it all up and doesn't look mushy.  It should look gloppy, similar to consistency of oatmeal.

Prep the rest of the vegetables while the crumbs are soaking.  Add everything except the ground beef and bacon to the saturated crumb mixture.  Stir until well combined.  

Add ground beef and combine thoroughly, using your hands.  If it needs more liquid to hold shape, add more catsup.  You can check for the correct consistency by making a small meatball with your hand.  Gently begin to shape into a mound while still in the bowl.  When it is holding together well, gently slide it onto the prepared baking sheet (using the large wide-mouthed bowl helps with that).  Pat the loaf to your liking (I like mine more flat than a traditional loaf - the cooking is more even and you don't end up with a pink middle).  With the side of your hand, push down in the center to form a shallow trough; add catsup to the indented area.

Use the bacon to make a lattice top for the meatloaf.  If you don't know how to do a lattice - it is easily found on Google or YouTube.  I have also seen bacon added by just laying strips across the loaf.  Make yourself happy - do it your way!  Tuck all of the bacon ends under the meatloaf.  I thought the lattice looked pretty.

Place in refrigerator to firm up for at least 30 minutes while you preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Remove meatloaf from fridge and place in middle rack of oven.  Bake for 30 minutes and turn the meatloaf.  Bake another 20 to 30 minutes.  Meat thermometer should read at least 160 degrees and bacon should be crispy.  In the attempt to get my bacon crispy, the internal temp was 170.  Fortunately, all that bacon fat kept everything nice and moist. 

This is AFTER I drained the grease - bacon makes a lot of grease.

Carefully drain the grease and allow to rest for 5 to 10 minutes after removing from oven before sliding it onto a cutting board using two large spatulas.  

I used two fish-turning spatulas to move the meatloaf intact
onto a cutting board

Use a serrated knife for slicing through the bacon without crushing the meatloaf.   

Everyone has their own meatloaf recipe - some cook the veggies in advance, some like a bit of crunch, some like it packed and tight for slicing.  I like it a little more moist and on the looser edge of things.  Adding bacon - not bad!  I won't do it every time, but I will do it from time to time!

Bon Appetit, Y'all!!!

World Famous PadreRitaGrill, South Padre Island, TX

If you've followed my posts from the blog beginnings in 2010, you will know I have been a huge fan of PadreRitaGrill back from its days as PadreRitaVille onwards thru the JB-forced renaming to PadreRitaGrill; and now to the renovated and fresh re-do courtesy of Food Network's Restaurant Impossible (show reportedly scheduled for an upcoming date in October).  I didn't get to be a part of the reno (which I would have loved to do) because I was playing Grandma entertainer for the Summer visits of my two granddaughters at the time.  I wanted so badly to go to the grand re-opening dinner...but I knew it would not be a good idea for tired kids (and I was right from what I hear).

So, my husband and I planned a date night for Sunday, August 10th...he wasn't on call, we hoped the week-end crowds would be heading home from the island, and there was a Supermoon on the calendar!  I told him I wanted to check out the revamped PadreRitaGrill and I wanted to walk the beach for photos of the moon rising.  I got to do exactly all that!

We looked up the moon rising schedule, saw it was visible rising from the SSE, and planned our dining time around that.  It worked out nearly perfect.  Due to traffic issues (I wasn't the only one wanting to see that moon over the beach) I missed the rise over the low horizon...but I did get some right purty pictures! (Yikes, sometimes the Texan just takes over and I have to say things like "right purty")

When we arrived at PadreRitaGrill, around 7:00 the outside looked pretty much the same.  Lovely foliage and fresh pots of flowers along the walkway in.  It's a nice entrance.  When the door opened, the sounds of J. Micheal Laferty welcomed us, as they have so often in the past.

New stage, same musical talent - always enjoy his playing.

Inside the dining area, though, is like a whole other world!  The old decor (which I did like because I'm kinda "that way") was kitschy and a bit cluttered.  The new look is much more elegant, clean lines, more upscale tropical.

Gone were the tikis replaced with simple and elegant
seagulls on wood over the fireplace

Loved the palm cutout and the great new color scheme.
Light and tropical - happy colors!

These pictures on the back wall make you think you are
looking out at the ocean despite being on downtown
Padre Blvd.!

The menu is streamlined to a one page set of offerings - all of which sounded really good.  The new recipes created by Chef Robert Irvine were highlighted.  Both my husband and I decided to try one of the new offerings.  Before arriving, our plan was for Mr. Flip Flop to try the Mole Glazed Roast Chicken and I was going to see if they had my same favorite nachos, and order those if they did.  However, everything changed when we saw so many new choices!

Mr. Flip Flop didn't start out our date night very happily.  He felt the chairs were uncomfortable, we were sitting too close to the stage in a lightly filled restaurant and we couldn't talk to each other... it was too loud for him.  In hopes of salvaging date night, I gave him some ibuprofen and asked to be moved to a table in the back and on we went with our date.

Our service was really outstanding.  Our server (I'm so sorry I don't remember her name - long brown pony tail - cute girl) was attentive, but not intrusively so.  That is a huge improvement!  We got our drinks and continued perusing the menu, declined appetizers, and settled on our choices.  Mr. Flip Flop seemed a bit happier (whew!) so my date night wasn't ruined.

Chimichurri Steak Salad - tasted as good as it looks!

chi·mi·chur·ri

ˌCHimiˈCHo͝ori/

noun (in South American and Mexican cooking) a piquant sauce or marinade traditionally used on grilled meat, typically containing parsley, garlic, vinegar, olive oil, and flakes of chili pepper.

1. 
   

I selected the Chimichurri Steak Salad.  It was described as "Grilled Skirt Steak, Mixed Greens, Guacamole and Chips.  You can see from the photo above it is generous, and looks delicious.  You can also see that is quite a dollop of really outstanding Guacamole.  You do not, however, see any chips. I also asked for no tomatoes - not a huge problem because my hubs always will eat my tomatoes.  I told Mr. Flip Flop that it would have been great with some chips (not realizing until later in the meal that they were actually supposed to be part of the dish and were missing).  I did get a little extra Chimichurri on the side because the salad had a lot of tasty greens and needed "something more" for a dressing.  The Chimichurri was so delicious, I didn't want to mix in another flavor, so our waitress promptly brought me a small amount more which was perfect.  I had asked that the meat be medium, and it was perfectly cooked and tender.  For the price of $12, I felt it was an excellent value and quite delicious.

One of the problems at "the old" PRG was stuff didn't always come out the way it was described.  If I'd realized earlier, I would have said something on the spot.  I know that is something they are really trying to correct.  I let Cathy and Micheal know via a private message - because if it's not right, let management know!  Cathy and Micheal and their staff do, I believe, really want to fix anything that is wrong.  They responded promptly to my message with a thank you and another request to say something "in real time". Regardless of the missing chips, I give this dish two thumbs up for flavor and value.  In fact, it was so large, I only ate a bit more than half and Mr. FF ate the rest.

Mr. Flip Flop loves salmon (and I don't) so he selected Chef Irvine's rendition of BBQ'd Salmon described as "BBQ'd Salmon, Smoked Tomatillo Salsa, Cilantro Lime Black Beans, and Grilled Corn".  The plate was priced at $16.  His feedback was that the salmon was absolutely delicious, including the Tomatillo Salsa.  I sampled only the black beans because I rarely find them well-seasoned and I wanted to see if they had a hit or a miss.  These beans were delicious - perfectly seasoned!  A half ear of corn - no grill marks noted, so I'm assuming not grilled corn - was on the plate.  You can be the judge, but we both felt the portions were very small for this price and the relative low-cost of the two sides. Maybe a whole ear of actually grilled corn would have made a difference if they need to keep the price of the salmon down by small portioning.  It was outstanding in flavor, but my husband cleaned his plate and he was still hungry.   Thus, he ate the rest of my salad because I wanted him to be happy...and I wanted to order dessert (there is always a method to my madness).

Dessert was key lime pie - a hard pie to make "different".  They offered it with a raspberry sauce, which I declined.  I wanted to taste the pureness of the pie.  It seemed an unusually long wait for pie that is already prepared - but that was the only service glitch we experienced - barely worth mentioning.  It was, however, worth the wait.  Nice presentation and absolutely divine in flavor.  Wonderful crust, light dusting of almonds on top, tasty whipped cream to enhance the rich flavor.  Tart enough for my taste buds, but not too tart for Mr. FF.  We shared it and nearly licked the plate.  It was a great ending to the meal.

While we were there, the restaurant filled up and the music was lovely as all of the sounds evened out.  We exited to a Gordon Lightfoot song, and that always puts me in a happy place.

I liked the old, I like the new even better...I look forward to visiting again!

Bon Appetit, Y'all!!!

Summer 2014

Wow, it has been a busy Summer for me!  Four weeks of visits from grandchildren, 5 trips to San Antonio, Corpus Christi, and/or Austin to pick up and deliver kids, and all of the activities involved in the grandkids' visits.  I didn't have the time or energy to write a single post!

Let's update on our eating out...I tried to limit eating out because of the crowds and the expense.  However, it is just about impossible not to.  My oldest granddaughter doesn't like shrimp.  Yes, it's true.  Neither does her Dad.  I'm not SURE we are related!  The youngest, though, makes up for it by her constant craving for shrimp.

I don't have many pictures of food.  However, I'll share what few I do have - mostly taken with cell phones (which are not awesome phones with great cameras).

Clayton's:  We ate burgers, boiled shrimp, chicken strips, and nachos before the fireworks.  Quite pricey for bar food but you can't beat the view, the nice staff, the great music, and the outstanding beach-front fireworks.  Worth the price for our visiting grandkids.

Wanna Wanna:  We ate here 3 or 4 times during their visits.  It has the value of being close to our usual beach access point where we set up camp for the days on the beach.  They have bathrooms.  They have decently priced, generous portioned, meals in the shade.  The girls could split an order, I could grab a corn dog (which are surprisingly good) and I could get a shady break without breaking the bank!

My son enjoying a Fried Fish Basket at Wanna Wanna

The girls enjoying a Chicken Stip Baske

A cold drink at Wanna Wanna helps keep it cool on a hot Summer's day!

Schlitterbahn:  We went to Schlitterbahn Beach so many times I can't count.  We always took an ice chest (we have a backpack ice chest) filled with juice boxes and water bottles alomg with a bag of mostly healthy snacks...we finished with Dippin' Dots too many times to count, and once we ate lunch there (surprisingly good and not too pricey - burger and chicken strips for the girls, a chicken sandwich for me).  No pictures of food at Schlitterbahn but I must have taken a huge number of them playing and doing the Boogie Bahn.  Did you know, in the Summer, there are lessons available during the week, before the park opens, for the Boogie Bahn?  Lola and Audrey took one together, then Audrey took two more lessons by herself.  Only $15 per person per lesson... and money well spent for a small group lesson (4 at the most when we were there).  I think they liked going to Schlitterbahn more than the beach!

U-Mix:  Frozen Yogurt and toppings.  A child's land of delight.  I didn't have my camera, this was the end of a "quiet" day...shopping for souvenirs, a trip to Paragraph's for books and a new movie (it was supposed to be one for each of them, but somehow it ended up being three for each)...I can hardly say no when they give me the puppy dog eyes.  I'm a sucker.  Anyway, at the end of that excursion, they continued to deplete my coffers by our trip to U-Mix.  The staff there are extremely customer oriented and gave us samples (especially the one who didn't think she liked froyo) and was patient while they loaded their bowls with mixtures of frozen yogurt and a large variety of toppings.  Since they weigh your treat...I think I should have been a better supervisor of the toppings they were loading on their treat!  Again, crummy cell phone photos and my oldest grandchild's penchant for sticking out her tongue in every single picture she possibly can.  However, you get the idea.  Kids, and adults alike, love U-Mix.  A great addition to the island.

She tried to eat it all...but she just couldn't do it.  She loved it, but it was just too much!

She did finish hers...less toppings and a more realistic serving.
What is WITH the tongue???

We also ate at Daddy's (kid's meals were a hit with spaghetti and chicken strips) and I loved my usual order of red beans and rice and sausage with corn muffins.  Delish!  John had Grilled Shrimp kabobs. Very good food.  A few meals at Dirty Al's Pelican Station and at Dirty Al's in Brownsville, as well as Pirate's Landing.  Shrimp, Shrimp, and more Shrimp!

Lola and William had a really nice grilled flounder dish at Dirty Al's Pelican Station.  John had the Red Snapper Rockefeller - amazing and should be tried if you have the opportunity.  Audrey had shrimp cocktail and I got her to try some of my fried shrimp.  She was so surprised at how delicious it was, that's all she had whenever we would go out thereafter!  She had only had fried shrimp at a little place in Austin and she said it was awful.  I felt certain she would like the best shrimp ever IMHO...at Dirty Al's.  She did!  She also liked our family favorite of Shrimp Po'boys at Pirate's Landing...the bread is awesome and makes it extra special.

Sunrise on South Padre before a sea turtle release

We were fortunate to be able to see a sea turtle hatchling release one July morning, courtesy of the wonderful folks at Sea Turtle, Inc.  As a reward for the girls (and for me) cooperating on that very early morning adventure, we made one of our 3 stops at Captain Donuts.  For some reason my kolache photos didn't make it...but I had a few from after the turtle morning so here they are.  Yummy!

Island Coconut Coffee...yum!

The fun we had all Summer was outstanding.  Before kid visits John and I had a chance to try out Harpoon's Surf Bar.  My photos were not awesome...but the food was outstanding.  We had a rib-eye sandwich with onion rings.  The bread was awesome and everything between it, too.  Will return again very soon.

Thanks for stopping by and sharing my Summer's re-cap...it's been full of fun and good food!

Bon Appetit, Y'all!!!