meatloaf and potatoes and berry crisp

After having now my third helping of the meatloaf and potatoes, I'm sort of self-congratulatory. So, don't want to forget to jot down my notes for later - Rebound Boy says it was perfect date food. But he's Mennonite and this is how he was raised, so I'd consider the background. Not what I would prepare for a Frenchman or a vegetarian, for example (though he warned me if I start up with vegetarians they'll all be Metrosexuals and less-than-satisfying ... and it was one of those moments when he wasn't completely full of shit).


"APPARENTLY I'VE BEEN LIVING TOO LONG IN NOLA" MEATLOAF
Saute the trinity (celery, onions, bell pepper - every Creole and Cajun dish starts like this, I'm told). Maybe 1/4 c. of each.
Toss in with the other stuff:
bread crumbs/oats (I put in one bread slice crumbed + 1/4 c. oats - I'd play with this - I think the oats make it less cohesive)
8 oz. can of tomato sauce
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
Tony Cachere's (sort of the NOLA answer to EVERYTHING)
pepper
thyme
oregano
garlic powder
1 egg
just over a pound of ground beef (if cooking for myself, I'd use turkey - but boys like beef, I'm told - and the protein is good for me)
(feel like I'm forgetting things ... will edit if necessary)
Bake 350 degrees about 65 minutes (in a loafpan)

"LOOKING INSIDE THE YAMASAKI SAUSAGE FACTORY" POTATOES
Boil some taters with whole cloves of garlic. 5 yellow (2 #) for two people is TOO MANY. I put in maybe 10 cloves of garlic and the taste was FANTASTIC. He said he couldn't taste it much, but that's because he's apparently taste-deprived - the garlic was SO STRONG but mellow simultaneously.
Mash. Add some butter, cream cheese (I'd probably replace this with sour cream ... didn't want to put in both, and I'm partial to sour cream), and milk to get it to right consistency.
Pepper

COMFORT FOOD BERRY CRISP
Fill an 8x8 pan with berries - I had a mix of raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries that I bought at Costco in Cali and that worked well - grew up using wild blueberries and that was freakin awesome.
Mix together:
1 c. oats
1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. butter (ouch - that's a ton of saturated fat! With meatloaf no less! My arteries are clogged! - I could have used Earth Balance and it'd be fine for me)
1/2 c. brown sugar

Put on top of the berries and kind of push it in at spots so there's a variety of texture in each bite - some more berry, some more crisp. And it's not really crisp - but I can never think of the best word. Not a crumble or a crunch or a cobbler. But way yummy. And best with ice cream. He missed the cue with the whipped cream can - sometimes I need to be explicit. But I think any accessories in my bed last night would have flipped me out even more, so it was good that he didn't bring it along. And, it's low calorie so I can continue to enjoy it alone. With fruit!