I will admit that I have come late to cooking. For many years, I, like my mother before me, leaned toward a few very standard dishes that didn’t take too long to make. All you have to do is ask my children what they ate growing up and they’ll have two answers for you: spaghetti with tomato sauce and tostadas (pinto beans and salad on top of corn tortillas). My cousin Lee will even throw in that he has been a mentor to me in terms of cooking. He grew up with a mother who actually cooked and a father who grilled so he had a major head-start. (Our housekeeper cooked lunch five days a week and then we either ate leftovers or cereal for dinner.) On top of that, Ray is someone who literally could eat the same meal for years (part of the reason why I never expanded our dinner menu when the kids were little), so as I said, I’ve come to cooking later than most.

If you’ve read my blog much at all then you know I love to bake. That satisfies my sweet tooth and also has the benefit of making Ray exceedingly happy. But regular ole food? Well, that has been a bit harder for me to get interested in. That is until Lee’s daughter, Nicki, introduced me to the Instant Pot, an appliance that is perfect for a reluctant cook like me. But even with the Instant Pot, there are a few things that are just better when cooked in the oven. This brings me to my all-time favorite turkey meatloaf recipe. Ray and I don’t eat beef or pork, so finding a good recipe for a staple like meatloaf has not been all that easy. However, I stumbled upon the one below a few years back and it never disappoints. The basic recipe is simple: throw all the ingredients in a bowl, stir, pour into a baking dish and slather with catsup. I will guarantee that you’ll be very pleased with the result.

I can say this for sure since just today I made this recipe and just finished my dinner. I threw in a few Irish potatoes while the meatloaf cooked, so I could have one along with some salad for my meal. This recipe fills the bill as easy, reliable and very tasty. What else could you want? I supposed I could also mention that it’s economical since ground turkey is not all that expensive.

I hope you enjoy it if you try it. Please let me know since I get a kick out of hearing that other people have benefited from my labor as a cook. I use chicken broth rather than milk but either way is good. Also, I would say 1 1/2 hours of cooking is a bit more accurate.

Happy Saturday night to all. I am officially off-duty and heading upstairs. I’m looking forward to a restful evening.

We’ll talk again tomorrow.

Turkey Meatloaf

1 1/2 pound lean ground turkey
1 cup milk or chicken broth
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoon chopped fresh basil or 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon mustard
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 chopped clove garlic
1 egg
3/4 cup ground cracker crumbs
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup red pepper
1/4 cup ketchup

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients except ketchup. Spread mixture in greased 8 x 4 or 9 x 5 inch loaf pan. Spread ketchup over.

Bake uncovered 1 – 1 1/4 hours or until the thermometer reads at least 160 degrees. Let stand 5 minutes. Remove from pan. Enjoy.