CincyEats

I don’t know about you, but when there is even a remote possibility of my mother coming over for dinner, I get stressed out. Am I making something that will taste good? Am I making something that’s fancy, but not too fancy? I don’t want to repeat the rosemary, bacon meatloaf. Finally the big one,  is my house clean? As you can see, a lot of things run through my head.  This is how is all started.

Me to Dad: “When are you going to come over and see the deck?”

Dad: “I am free tomorrow, talk to you mother.”

Me to Mom: “You want to come over for dinner tomorrow night?”

Mom: “We have a fund raiser until 7, but maybe after that”

Me: “7 is fine, can dad wait that long to eat”

You get the idea.  At first I thought I would make carnitas with all the fixings. The carnitas could cook all day in the slow cooker.  I would have left over beans to go with them.  Make some rice when I got home from work and we’d be good to go. Well, that didn’t work out.  I ended up inviting my sister and brother in law. The addition meant I didn’t have enough beans, which also cook in the slow cooker. A new plan was needed.

New Plan: Spaghetti and meatballs, how hard could it be. I had sauce in the freezer.  I referred to one of my favorite cookbook, The Silver Spoon, for a meatball recipe. I had plenty of time when I got home from work to make it happen… Well, it didn’t happen. I didn’t follow the recipe exactly. The meatballs where falling apart when I was browning them.  I started panicking that it wasn’t going to work. I couldn’t make something else, because my dad would not last long after 7 before he started complaining. My new plan needed a new plan! I threw all the meat in the saute pan and started breaking it up. When it was cooked through, I drained the fat and poured in the tomato sauce. Brought it to a simmer and, voila, meat sauce. It was not meatballs, but it was going to be dinner!

So, my original dinner didn’t  work out exactly the way that I wanted. Fortunately, a good meal was had by all and now I have a week night dinner to add to the rotating selection. The combo of the three meats makes it a little more special, with some added flavor depth.

1 jar of your favorite tomato sauce (or homemade if you have it)

1 lb of ground beef (i think i used 93/7)

1/2 lb ground pork

1/2 lb ground veal

1/4 c  parsley, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

salt and pepper

olive oil

1. mix meats, parsley and garlic together in a bowl, salt and pepper to taste
2. heat a little bit of olive oil in a large pan, you could use a dutch oven too
3. cook meat mixture all the way through
4. drain fat from pan
5. pour in tomato sauce and bring to a boil
6. reduce to a simmer for about 10 minutes
7. adjust seasonings as preferred.

I served it over whole wheat spaghetti, but your favorite pasta will do. You could even use it in lasagna if you feel ambitious. Make a  simple salad and you have a pretty well rounded meal…remember nothing is ever set in stone, make it work for you.