Dad's Famous Meatloaf

I suspected it for a while, but now it seems unavoidable: the ghetto grocery is indeed de-ghetto-i-fying. Tracie was visiting for a few days, so she got to see the infamous ghetto grocery with her own eyes, and suddenly I realized how distinctly un-ghetto it was looking. They have redone the parking lot, they have new, more attractive signage up. In places they have put down swank wood flooring. And now, the clincher: they are putting in a bakery/deli counter, along with soup and salad bars. It's pretty marvelous.

Then, just when I thought it was clearly wonderful, we couldn't find pita chips anywhere, and it became ghetto again. I'm glad it didn't make a liar out of me.

Yesterday I went there to stock up on items for the first of the official Main Dishes, 'Dad's Famous Meatloaf'--the dad in this case being Josh's dad, as this recipe was from his parents. Wait, what? Did you read correctly? Did I say we are onto the Main Dishes? YES I DID. We are entering the home stretch people, and don't it feel good?

The good news about Stu's meatloaf is manifold:
1. It is easy and fast enough to make that even I can't really screw it up.
2. I have made it before and know I like it. Yes, I might not like a lot of things, but I do like meatloaf. I find it gives such a wonderful opportunity to eat the oft-ignored A1 sauce.
3. There were no bugs of any sort that I noticed in any of the ingredients, which at this point is a huge relief after my 10 plagues kitchen.
4. Josh loves it (on the 'it's good' scale, it ranks high), and he came home from work stressed last night, so this was a nice surprise for him.
5. It is magically booby-trapped so that Josh somehow tries to dump it out of the loaf pan like a banana bread, failing miserably, so that the meatloaf hangs tight but grease and fat splay everywhere provoking a slew of invectives from his mouth. And I find that amusing.

Please note: Josh would like you to be reminded
that he does most of the photo work and some of the
wonderful dishwashing for this blog.
Not this time, but, you know, usually.

Josh's Dad's Famous Meatloaf

1 lb very lean ground beef
1 egg
3/4 cup breadcrumbs (or crushed saltines)
3 tbsp ketchup
3 tsp worcestershire sauce
1 tsp onion (or regular) salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 onion chopped fine (optional)*

Go to grocery. Be annoyed that you can't find anything less than 1 1/3 lbs ground beef. Open breadcrumbs nervously and heave huge sigh of relief when moths do not fly out. Re-read recipe and discover you are supposed to use onion salt, which you don't have. Oh well.

Further re-read the instructions and see that they say, 'First, put potatoes in oven at 325 as they take a little longer than the meatloaf.' Deduce that Stu usually makes potatoes with the meatloaf, but decide to spare Josh this indignity as he does not like potatoes and he had to have them last week.

Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mix well. Form into loaf and place in a greased baking pan. Or, not greased. Woops.

Bake for one hour @ 325.

Pretty much everything can be altered to taste. Also you can use this recipe for meatballs! Enjoy!

*Onion chopping method: still Mike Milch's marvelous method. Delight.