Father's Day Part 2

“When my father didn't have my hand...he had my back.” – Linda Poindexter

It’s been all about dad this week. Everywhere I go I see things for dad; even while I'm watching TV there have been lots of commercials about dad (the Golf Town one with the dad golfing and the baby in the Snuggly is my favourite). 

This week we’re going to include recipes for dad. My dad loves both my cooking and my baking. One of his favourite dishes of mine is my meatloaf, so I am going to share that recipe with you this week. Nicole is going to share a recipe that is sure to delight dad as well. 

Enjoy and Happy Father’s Day!

Meatloaf Recipe

You will need:

1 ½ pounds of ground beef

1 egg

½ onion, chopped

½ cup milk

½ cup diced tomatoes in their juices

¾ cup of red and/or green peppers, diced

1 cup dried bread crumbs/cracker crumbs

Salt and pepper to taste

2 Tbsp. brown sugar

2 Tbsp. mustard

1/3 cup ketchup

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

In a large bowl combine the ground beef, egg, onion, milk, diced tomatoes, peppers, and crumbs. Season with the salt and pepper and then place in a loaf pan. 

In a smaller bowl, combine the brown sugar, mustard, and ketchup. Mix and spread over the top of the meatloaf. 

Bake for about an hour. 

Slice and serve.

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Samantha shared one of her dad's favourite meals, so I thought I'd share one of my dad's favourite deserts. It's probably one of my favourites too, it's absolutely delicious! We found the recipe in Chef Michael Smith's cookbook "The Best of Chef at Home: Essential Recipes for Today's Kitchen" which also contains a bunch of other yummy recipes.

  

Molten Chocolate Cakes (Chef Michael Smith)

You will need:

8 oz. (250g) bitter-sweet or dark chocolate

½ cup of butter, softened

2 Tbsp. cocoa powder

4 eggs

¼ cup brown or white sugar

1 Tbsp. pure vanilla extract

butter, for greasing ramekins

white sugar, for sprinkling on greased ramekins

whipped cream or ice cream, for serving

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C)

To protect the chocolate from direct heat, melt it and the butter in a heat-proof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, gently stirring until the butter and chocolate melt together. Remove from the heat and sift in the cocoa powder, stirring until smooth.

Meanwhile, beat the eggs with the brown sugar and vanilla until they are thick and smooth. Pour in the melted chocolate and stir until smooth.

Rub the inside of each ramekin or muffin mould with butter to make a thin film. Lightly sprinkle each with sugar and shake to coat the inside, shaking out any excess.

Evenly divide the cake batter around the ramekins.

Place on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until the batter rises, the tops are cracked and the insides are still a bit gooey, no more than 10 minutes.

Cool for a few minutes; the cakes will shrink a bit and pull away fro the sides. If necessary, run a paring knife around the edges of the cakes to loosen them. Carefully invert onto a plate.

Serve with lots of whipped cream or ice cream.