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Friday, January 30, 2015

TCM's 2015 31 Days of Oscar Schedule

It happens every year, just like clockwork. Turner Classic Movies shows some of the very best movies ever made during its 31 Days of Oscar salute.  Here is the schedule below. Set your DVRs!  (Especially since, inexplicably, some of the most popular movies seem to be on in the middle of the night)

I have highlighted my most favorite recommendations in red. Not that that doesn't mean I don't recommend other movies on this long list. Just that these are the ones I return to again and again.

For more info, go to TCM.com

Enjoy!

2015 SCHEDULE


Sunday, February 1
Daytime Genre: Adventure
6:00 AM The Old Man and the Sea (1958)
7:30 AM The Jungle Book (1942)
9:30 AM The Four Feathers (1939)
11:45 AM The Wind and the Lion (1975)
2:00 PM The Great Race (1965)
5:00 PM Around the World in 80 Days (1956) (best picture winner)
Primetime
8:00 PM And the Oscar Goes To… (2014)
10:00 PM Wings (27) (Paramount pool title) (best picture winner)
12:45 AM All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) (best picture winner)
3:00 AM Cimarron (1930) (best picture winner)
5:15 AM The Broadway Melody (1929) (best picture winner)


Monday, February 2
Daytime Genre: Melodrama
7:15 AM Camille (1937)
9:15 AM Random Harvest (1942)
11:30 AM Humoresque (1946)
1:45 PM The Great Lie (1941)
3:45 PM Magnificent Obsession (1954)
5:45 PM Imitation of Life (1959)
Primetime
8:00 PM Little Women (1933)
10:00 PM 42nd Street (1933)
11:45 PM Public Enemy (1931)
1:30 AM Grand Hotel (1932) (best picture winner)
3:30 AM Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1932)
5:30 AM The Champ (1931)

Tuesday, February 3
Daytime Genre: Spy
7:00 AM The Red Danube (1949)
9:00 AM Suzy (1936)
11:00 AM The Fallen Sparrow (1943)
12:45 PM Ice Station Zebra (1968)
3:15 PM Foreign Correspondent (1941)
5:30 PM North by Northwest (1959)
Primetime
8:00 PM A Tale of Two Cities (1935)
10:15 PM Mutiny on the Bounty (1935) (best picture winner)
12:45 AM The Thin Man (1934)
2:30 AM Top Hat (1935)
4:30 AM The Lost Patrol (1934)
5:45 AM Roberta (1935)

Wednesday, February 4
Daytime Genre: Sports
7:15 AM Good News (1947)
9:00 AM Million Dollar Mermaid (1952)
11:00 AM Grand Prix (1966)
2:00 PM Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956)
4:00 PM The Pride of the Yankees (1942)
6:15 PM Pat and Mike (1952)
Primetime
8:00 PM Swing Time (1936)
10:00 PM The Awful Truth (1937)
12:00 AM Grand Illusion (1937)
2:00 AM The Life of Emile Zola (1937) (best picture winner)
4:15 AM The Last of the Mohicans (1936)

Thursday, February 5
Daytime Genre: Gangster
6:00 AM Manhattan Melodrama (1934)
8:00 AM Star Witness (1931)
9:30 AM Smart Money (1931)
11:00 AM The Public Enemy (1931)
12:30 PM G-Men (1935)
2:00 PM Bonnie and Clyde (1967)
4:00 PM Pete Kelly’s Blues (1955)
5:45 PM Robin and the 7 Hoods (1964)
Primetime
8:00 PM The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)  * a 'must see'
10:00 PM And the Oscar Goes To… (2014)
12:00 AM You Can’t Take it with You (1938) (best picture winner)
2:15 AM Four Daughters (1938)
4:00 AM Boys’ Town (1938)

Friday, February 6
Daytime Genre: Coming-of-Age
6:00 AM Captains Courageous (1937)
8:00 AM Little Women (1949)  * a 'must see'
10:15 AM My Life as a Dog (1986)
12:00 PM The 400 Blows (1959)
1:45 PM Splendor in the Grass (1961)
4:00 PM Rebel Without a Cause (1955)
6:00 PM The Reivers (1969)
Primetime
8:00 PM Wuthering Heights (1939)
10:00 PM Gone With the Wind (1939) (best picture winner)
2:00 AM The Man in the Iron Mask (1939)
4:00 AM Pride and Prejudice (1940)

Saturday, February 7
Daytime Genre: Westerns
6:00 AM How the West Was Won (1962)
9:00 AM The Naked Spur (1953)
11:00 AM And the Oscar Goes To… (2014)
1:00 PM She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949)
3:00 PM Cheyenne Autumn (1964)
5:45 PM The Professionals (1966)
Primetime
8:00 PM The Philadelphia Story (1940)
10:00 PM Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941)
11:45 PM Citizen Kane (1941)
2:00 AM Mrs. Miniver (1942) (best picture winner) * always mean to watch. Going to make sure I dvr this year!
4:15 AM The Great Dictator (1940)

Sunday, February 8
Daytime Genre: Family
6:30 AM Tom Thumb (1958)
8:30 AM The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm (1962)
10:45 AM Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968)
1:15 PM The Brave One (1956)
3:00 PM National Velvet (1944)
5:45 PM The Yearling (1946)
Primetime
8:00 PM Lassie Come Home (1943)
10:00 PM Casablanca (1942) (best picture winner)  * a 'must see'
12:00 AM Gaslight (1944)  * a 'must see'

2:00 AM Woman of the Year (1942)
4:00 AM Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944)

Monday, February 9
Daytime Genre: War
6:30 AM Destination Tokyo (1943)
9:00 AM Bombardier (1943)
10:45 AM Sahara (1943)
12:30 PM They Were Expendable (1945)
3:00 PM Battleground (1949)
5:00 PM The Young Lions (1958)
Primetime
8:00 PM The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) (best picture winner)
11:00 PM The Story of G.I. Joe (1945)
1:00 AM Laura (1944)
3:00 AM Mildred Pierce (1945)

5:00 AM The Harvey Girls (1946)

Tuesday, February 10
Daytime Genre: Mysteries
7:00 AM Julie (1956)
9:00 AM Crossfire (1947)
10:30 AM Suspicion (1941)
12:30 PM Mystery Street (1950)
2:15 PM The Fallen Idol (1948)
4:00 PM After the Thin Man (1936)
6:00 PM Charade (1963)
Primetime
8:00 PM Gentleman’s Agreement (1947) (best picture winner)
10:15 PM The Killers (1946)
12:15 AM Duel in the Sun (1947)
2:45 AM The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer (1947)
4:30 AM Smash-Up: The Story of a Woman (1947)

Wednesday, February 11
Daytime Genre: Swashbucklers
6:30 AM The Corsican Brothers (1941)
8:15 AM The Flame and the Arrow (1956)
9:45 AM The Prisoner of Zenda (1937)
11:30 AM Captain Blood (1935)
1:30 PM The Sea Hawk (1940)
3:45 PM The Three Musketeers (1948)
6:00 PM The Four Musketeers (1974)
Primetime
8:00 PM All the King’s Men (1949) (best picture winner)
10:00 PM Twelve O’Clock High (1948)
12:15 AM The Bicycle Thief (1948)
2:00 AM The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)
4:15 AM Mighty Joe Young (1949)

Thursday, February 12
Daytime Genre: Biographies
6:00 AM Edison, the Man (1940)
8:00 AM Lust for Life (1956)
10:15 AM Sergeant York (1941)
12:45 PM The Miracle Worker (1962)
2:45 PM The Spirit of St. Louis (1957)
5:15 PM Funny Girl (1968)
Primetime
8:00 PM The Gunfighter (1950)
9:30 PM The Third Man (1949)
11:30 PM An American in Paris (1951) (best picture winner)
1:30 AM Born Yesterday (1950)
3:30 AM Father of the Bride (1950)  * a 'must see'
5:30 AM The Lavender Hill Mob (1951)


Friday, February 13
Daytime Genre: Horror
7:00 AM The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939)
9:00 AM The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945)
11:00 AM The Bad Seed (1956)
1:15 PM What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)
3:45 PM The Birds (1963)
6:00 PM Poltergeist (1982)
Primetime
8:00 PM How to Marry a Millionaire (1953)
9:45 PM Roman Holiday (1953)
12:00 AM From Here to Eternity (1953) (best picture winner)
2:15 AM A Place in the Sun (1951)  * a 'must see'
4:30 AM Ivanhoe (1952)  * a 'must see'


Saturday, February 14
Daytime Genre: Romantic Comedy
6:30 AM Vivacious Lady (1938)
8:15 AM Libeled Lady (1936)
10:00 AM Holiday (1938)
11:45 AM Skylark (1941)
1:30 PM Adam’s Rib (1949)
3:30 PM The More The Merrier (1943)
5:30 PM Irma La Douce (1963)
Primetime
8:00 PM The Red Balloon (1956)
8:45 PM The Harder They Fall (1956)
10:45 PM The Caine Mutiny (1954)
1:00 AM Marty (1955) (best picture winner)
2:45 AM Blackboard Jungle (1955)
4:45 AM The Man with the Golden Arm (1955)

Sunday, February 15
Daytime Genre: Film Noir
7:00 AM Johnny Eager (1941)
9:00 AM T-Men (1948)
10:45 AM The Naked City (1948)
12:30 PM The Asphalt Jungle (1950)
2:30 PM The Blue Dahlia (1946)
4:15 PM The Maltese Falcon (1941)
6:00 PM Key Largo (1948)
Primetime
8:00 PM The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) (best picture winner)
11:00 PM The Defiant Ones (1958)
1:00 AM I Want to Live! (1958)
3:15 AM Raintree County (1957)

Monday, February 16
Daytime Genre: Epics
6:15 AM Quo Vadis (1951)
9:15 AM Exodus (1960)
1:00 PM Giant (1956)
4:30 PM Doctor Zhivago (1965)
Primetime
8:00 PM Anatomy of a Murder (1959)
11:00 PM Pillow Talk (1959)
1:00 AM Gigi (1958) (best picture winner)
3:00 AM Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958)

5:00 AM The Brothers Karamazov (1958)

Tuesday, February 17
Daytime Genre: Crime
7:30 AM Fury (1936)
9:15 AM Monsieur Verdoux (1947)
11:30 AM The Mark (1961)
1:45 PM In Cold Blood (1957)
4:15 PM The Thomas Crown Affair (1967)
6:00 PM Bullitt (1968)
Primetime
8:00 PM Ben-Hur (1959) (best picture winner)  * a 'must see'
12:00 AM Psycho (1960)

2:00 AM Sunrise at Campobello (1960)
4:45 AM The Sundowners (1960)

Wednesday, February 18
Daytime Genre: Religion
7:15 AM The Big Fisherman (1959)
10:15 AM The Shoes of the Fisherman (1968)
1:00 PM The Singing Nun (1966)
2:45 PM The Nun’s Story (1959)
5:30 PM The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965)
Primetime
8:00 PM The Apartment (1960) (best picture winner)
10:15 PM To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)  * a 'must see'
12:30 AM The Hustler (1961)

3:00 AM Days of Wine and Roses (1962)
5:15 AM Lolita (1961)

Thursday, February 19
Daytime Genre: Courtroom Dramas
8:15 AM Twilight of Honor (1963)
10:15 AM Trial (1955)
12:30 PM Witness for the Prosecution (1957)
2:30 PM Inherit the Wind (1960)
5:00 PM Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)
Primetime
8:00 PM Dr. Strangelove (1963)
9:45 PM The Sand Pebbles (1966)
1:15 AM A Man for All Seasons (1966) (best picture winner)
3:30 AM A Hard Day’s Night (1964)  * a 'must see'
5:00 AM Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (1967)

Friday, February 20
Daytime Genre: Prison
7:00 AM Weary River (1929)
8:30 AM The Big House (1930)
10:00 AM I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932)
11:30 AM White Heat (1949)
1:30 PM Caged (1950)
3:15 PM Birdman of Alcatraz (1962)
5:45 PM Cool Hand Luke (1967)
Primetime
8:00 PM Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
10:00 PM Planet of the Apes (1968)
12:00 AM Easy Rider (1969)
1:45 AM Oliver! (1968) (best picture winner)
4:30 AM Rachel, Rachel (1968)

Saturday, February 21
Daytime Genre: Comedy
6:15 AM Speedy (1928)
7:45 AM She Done Him Wrong (1933)
9:00 AM The Ladykillers (1955)
10:45 AM A Day at the Races (1937)

12:45 PM Way Out West (1937)
2:00 PM Ruggles of Red Gap (1935)
3:45 PM Auntie Mame (1958) * a 'must see'
6:15 PM The Producers (1967)  * a 'must see'

Primetime
8:00 PM Patton (1970) (best picture winner)
11:00 PM McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971)
1:15 AM Papillon (1973)
4:00 AM Klute (1971)

Sunday, February 22
Daytime Theme: Science Fiction
6:00 AM One Million B.C. (1940)
7:30 AM When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth (1970)
9:15 AM The Time Machine (1960)
11:00 AM Forbidden Planet (1956)
12:45 PM 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
3:30 PM 2010 (1984)
5:30 PM Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
Primetime
8:00 PM The Man Who Would Be King (1975)
10:30 PM One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975) (best picture winner)
1:00 AM Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
3:15 AM Network (1976)
5:30 AM Bound for Glory (1976)

Monday, February 23
Daytime Genre: Drama
8:00 AM A Patch of Blue (1965)
10:00 AM Kings Row (1941)
12:15 AM Of Mice and Men (1939)
2:15 PM East of Eden (1955)
4:15 PM Jezebel (1938) * a 'must see'
6:00 PM Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore (1974)
Primetime
8:00 PM Annie Hall (1977) (best picture winner)
10:00 PM The Goodbye Girl (1977)
12:00 AM All the President’s Men (1976)
2:30 AM Barry Lyndon (1975)

Tuesday, February 24
Daytime Genre: Fantasy
6:00 AM Finian’s Rainbow (1968)
8:30 AM The 7 Faces of Dr. Lao (1964)
10:30 AM The Thief of Bagdad (1940)
12:30 PM Kismet (1944)
2:30 PM A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1935)
5:00 PM Berkeley Square (1933)
6:30 PM It Happened Tomorrow (1944)
Primetime
8:00 PM A Little Romance (1979)
10:00 PM Being There (1979)
12:30 AM Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) (best picture winner)
2:30 AM The Great Santini (1979)
4:30 AM “10” (1979)

Wednesday, February 25
Daytime Genre: Military Comedy
6:45 AM General Spanky (1936)
8:00 AM What Next, Corporal Hargrove? (1945)
10:00 AM Take the High Ground! (1953)
12:00 PM Once Upon a Honeymoon (1942)
2:00 PM The Americanization of Emily (1964)
4:15 PM Here Comes the Navy (1934)
5:45 PM Mister Roberts (1955) * a 'must see'
Primetime
8:00 PM Arthur (1981) (WB)
9:45 PM Coal Miner’s Daughter (1980)

12:00 AM Out of Africa (1985)
2:45 AM Fame (1980)
5:00 AM Gloria (1980)

Thursday, February 26
Daytime Genre: Political
7:15 AM The Gorgeous Hussey (1936)
9:00 AM Seven Days in May (1964)
11:00 AM Z (1969)
1:30 PM Meet John Doe (1941)
3:45 PM Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
6:00 PM The Candidate (1972)
Primetime
8:00 PM Absence of Malice (1981)
10:00 PM The Verdict (1982)
12:15 AM Chariots of Fire (1981) (best picture winner)
2:30 AM The Big Chill (1983)
4:30 AM Diner (1982)

Friday, February 27
Daytime Genre: Historical
6:30 AM Julius Caesar (1953)
8:45 AM Disraeli (1929)
10:15 AM Knights of the Round Table (1953)
12:15 PM The Lion in Winter (1968) * a 'must see'
2:30 PM 55 Days at Peking (1963)
5:15 PM The Emigrants (1972)
Primetime
8:00 PM Running on Empty (1988)
10:15 PM Gandhi (1982) (best picture winner)
1:30 AM Glory (1989)
3:45 AM A Cry in the Dark (1988)

Saturday, February 28
Daytime Theme: Thrillers
6:00 AM The Window (1949)
7:15 AM Night Must Fall (1937)
9:15 AM Kind Lady (1951)
10:45 AM Wait Until Dark (1967)
12:45 PM The Narrow Margin (1952)
2:00 PM Strangers on a Train (1951)
3:45 PM Shadow of a Doubt (1943)
5:45 PM The China Syndrome (1979)
Primetime
8:00 PM A River Runs Through It (1992)
10:30 PM A Few Good Men (1992)
1:00 AM The English Patient (1997) (best picture winner)
4:00 AM The Fisher King (1991)

Sunday, March 1
Daytime Genre: Musicals
6:30 AM Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933)
8:15 AM Shall We Dance (1937)
10:15 AM You Were Never Lovelier (1942)
12:15 PM On the Town (1949)
2:00 PM The Music Man (1962)
4:45 PM Fiddler on the Roof (1971)
Primetime
8:00 PM Life is Beautiful (1997)
10:15 PM Chicago (2002) (best picture winner)
12:30 AM Shakespeare in Love (1998) (best picture winner)
2:45 AM The Cider House Rules (1999)

Monday, March 2
Daytime Genre: Disaster
5:30 AM San Francisco (1936)
7:30 AM Green Dolphin Street (1947)
10:00 AM The Hurricane (1937)
11:45 AM The Last Voyage (1960)
1:30 PM Them! (1954)
3:30 PM The Swarm (1978)
6:00 PM The Poseidon Adventure (1972)
Primetime
8:00 PM Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
11:15 PM Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
2:30 AM Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) (best
picture winner)

Tuesday, March 3
Daytime Genre: Romance
6:00 AM The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964)
7:45 AM Far from the Madding Crowd (1967)
10:45 AM That Hamilton Woman (1941)
1:00 PM Dodsworth (1936)
2:45 PM Now, Voyager (1942) * a 'must see'
4:45 PM Love Affair (1939)
6:15 PM Georgy Girl (1966)
Primetime
8:00 PM The Artist (2011) (best picture winner)
10:00 PM The King’s Speech (2010) (best picture winner)
12:30 AM No Country for Old Men (2007) (best picture winner)
2:45 AM The Queen (2006)

Funny Cat Video

Absolutely funniest cat video I have ever seen!
Be patient - it's there - it just takes a second to load.

Wednesday, January 7, 2015

Thanksgiving Dinner Meatloaf

Those who know me know that I am a "let's see what I get if I put these ingredients together" kind of gal. I also am one of those annoying cooks who doesn't measure, so it often makes it hard for me to share my recipes. However.... I knew that if this idea turned out, I would want to share it. So, like a good girl, I tried very hard to write down everything I did and remembered to measure and not just add by sight and smell. You're welcome.

So, as the title says, this is a Thanksgiving Dinner Meatloaf.  Ok, so other than ground turkey, what does that mean, right? Well, it means cornbread stuffing (sort of), and veggies, and cranberry sauce and potatoes.  All in one dish. And yeah, I know - ugh, ground turkey, it's always dry - right? Well this was not!

Now, to be clear, I made this by the seat of my pants. I had no idea what I was doing. I made it all up as I went along.  I am going to give you the recipe as I made it and then, at the end, I will give you some notes as to anything I might change, add in, leave out... you get the idea.  Also, this is a great recipe for using up left over veggies, so keep in mind, as you read the ingredient list, you can easily substitute other items or even add some more.

One more thing before we start. Like a total doofus, I was doing this without my glasses on - which means, my pics are not in focus. Yeah - that's right - idiot! But I figure better a few blury pics than nothing. So - sorry guys.

Here we go!

Ingredients (enough for 2 meatloaves, I always make 2 at a time. 1 to freeze)

3.25 lbs of turkey (approx.)
1 bag 14 oz Pepperidge Farm Corn Bread Stuffing Mix (or any brand)
1 small shallot
1 stalk of celery
salt pork (you can get from butcher if not in meat case)
2 cans diced potatoes
1/4 cup shredded carrots
1/4 cup green beans (canned, frozen or fresh)
1 cup chicken stock/broth plus a splash
1 8 oz can cranberry sauce
1 tsp sage plus 1/4 tsp
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3/4 tsp ground rosemary
1/2 tsp ground thyme
1/2 tsp celery salt
1 pod Knorr Chicken Homestyle Stock
approx. 2 oz apple sauce
3 tbsp. brown sugar
butter
olive oil

Finely dice the shallot and celery and sauté in a pan with butter and olive oil until soft.

In a bowl, place approx. half of the corn bread crumbs.  Add the 1 cup of chicken stock to the crumbs.  Add the celery and onion. Add 1/4 tsp sage. Mix until just combined. Set aside

Place ground turkey in a large mixing bowl.

In blender or food processor add the carrots, the green beans and the salt pork.
Why the salt pork? Because turkey tends to dry out easily. I don't want to add a package of pork and alter the flavor, but I want to add a little extra fat to help keep it moist. Personally, I choose not to use the heavy rind.  I cut out two of the fattiest parts. They weighed out to be 1.7 oz, but you can see from the pick they weren't particularly big. Remember, you are just trying to add a little extra fat. And of course, this is entirely optional.
see - sorry, blury. But give you an idea of how much salt pork I used.

Blend until completely pureed. You may need to add a splash of chicken stock to keep the carrots from sticking to the side of the bowl. Be prepared, when you are done, the contents will look very unappetizing lol.  Add to the ground turkey. (these pureed veggies worked as a binder and helped keep the meatloaf moist)

Add 1/4 cup of cranberry sauce. Reserve the rest of the can.  Add the Knorr chicken stock.  Add the stuffing mixture.  Add the sage, salt, pepper, rosemary, thyme and celery salt.  Mix together until well blended (you will probably want to use your hands.)  Once mixed, the mixture will definitely seem too wet. Add some of the remaining dry crumbs from the remainder in the bag of PF cornbread. Apprx 3/4 -1 cup, until consistency feels right.
Knorr chicken stock pods
 
Open the can of diced potatoes. NOTE: I wasn't sure if missing them in would crush the potatoes, so I chose to layer them. I may decide to try mixing them in next time. It's a matter of preference.

Place a small amount of the meat mixture in the bottom of your loaf pan.  Cover with a layer of your diced potatoes. Cover with another layer of mix, be sure to press down to get the meat all around the potatoes. Repeat the 2 layers and cover with remaining meat mixture.




Bake at 400 for about an hour and 10 minutes. Oven times may vary. We have a double oven and the top oven is small and does tend to cook just a little faster than the large one - so you may need to cook a little longer.

Sauce/Glaze: In a small sauce pan, combine remaining cranberry sauce, apple sauce and brown sugar.  Cook, stirring frequently until mixture is smooth. During the last 15 minutes or so of baking, brush the sauce on top of the meatloaf for a tasty glaze.  The remainder can be spread on the meatloaf when it's served or placed on the side of the dish to dip in.

We served ours with herbed corn bread. Easy peasy! 2 boxes of Jiffy cornbread mix made as directed, plus all the same seasonings in the meatloaf recipe, same measurements and everything (minus the salt).  I suggest stirring in the herbs into the cornbread before you add any of your wet ingredients to help ensure they get evenly dispersed. You don't want to over mix your bread.  It's delicious!  And a great base for making actual cornbread stuffing for Thanksgiving!


Since this has our meat, veggies and potatoes already all in it, we decided to have it with just a piece of the cornbread and a side salad. It was a hit. It did fall a part a little bit when trying to take it out, but that didn't effect the flavor at all. And..... it was NOT dry!


NOTES: Now, we are not big on veggies here. But... if your family is, you could leave the shredded carrots whole and have them as a nice crunchy contrast in your meatloaf.  Also, if you have leftover veggies in your fridge, puree them and use them! Great way to use up peas, Brussel sprouts, squash, sweet potatoes, etc. You could add Craisins, use turnip, squash or any combination instead of/or with your potatoes.  I would not recommend keeping things like green beans or peas whole as they would just be mush by the time the meatloaf is cooked and then be unappetizing.  If you prefer, you could layer with mashed potatoes. If you really want to be jazzy, alter layers with sweet potatoes with mini marshmallows, or butternut squash with pecans.  You could also serve with canned/jarred turkey gravy instead of cranberry sauce.  The possibilities are endless, but you can easily get that wonderful Thanksgiving dinner taste without having to deal with a big turkey and piles of side dishes any time you want.  Enjoy!

Oh! I alost forgot - want more stuffing? Want to have a side of stuffing with this?  Have 2 bags of stuffing mix. Increase the amount of celery and onion. When you put it all in the bowl, add more chicken stock, just until moist. Add all of the seasonings listed in the recipe, add some Craisins and chopped walnuts and 3 tbsp. of melted butter. Mix. Put into a backing dish or individual ramekins and serve with your meatloaf.