In my Roaring Twenties era book, Chicago Lightning, which begins with the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre-1929, I mentioned two meals that my protagonists eat. One is potato soup with homemade yeast rolls they have in a family setting, and the other is a meat loaf special they purchase at a roadside diner.
I also have the female protagonist, Ceara, think about meat loaf being her least favorite meal, but she’s hungry, and she eats it happily. That reaction is 100% mine. I absolutely loathe meat loaf.
My mom made meat loaf a lot when I was growing up, and it wasn’t tasty. It was swimming in shimmery brownish-red liquid grease that concealed on the bottom when it cooled; the texture gagged me; and the flavor changed each time she made it. I’ve never gotten over that taste bud trauma and, at my age, I’m not about to get over it and like meatloaf.
This is my mom’s meat loaf recipe exactly as she wrote it for me some
forty-five years ago when I first began collecting family recipes. Granted, this
is a c. Depression Era recipe and you made do with the ingredients on hand or
that you could afford, but…damn…nutmeg?
- Ground beef
- Crackers or oatmeal or breadcrumbs
- Salt
- Pepper
- Butter
- Eggs
- Milk
- Nutmeg
- Worcestershire Sauce
- Onion
- Ketchup
- Mix by hand. Press into a loaf pan. Bake at 350° for one hour.
- The first recorded recipe for the modern American meatloaf is from the late 1870s, according to the food historian Andrew Smith, who told us that it instructed the cook to finely chop “whatever cold meat you have.
- In the 1940s meatloaf was an emblem of wartime ingenuity.
- By the 1950s, meatloaf was here to stay. Betty Crocker had recipes, which home cooks tweaked. A 1958 book, 365 Ways to Cook Hamburger, included 70 recipes for meatloaf.
Since I wouldn’t know one edible meat loaf recipe from the next, I don’t have one to share. However, here is an image of a decent looking meatloaf that I envision Ceara might have been served at the diner alongside mashed potatoes and a vegetable.
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| Image Renee Comet (photographer), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons |
Chicago Lightning Meat Loaf Excerpt
“Take this window booth. Slide in on this side so the handcuff
is to the wall.” He slid onto the booth across from her.
A radio played somewhere in the back. The only other person
in the restaurant sat on a stool at the far end of the long lunch counter, his
coat and hat on the stool beside him. He nursed a cup of coffee while reading
the newspaper. A tendril of smoke rose from his cigarette.
“There’s a pay-phone in the hallway.”
“No privacy. We’ll find another.”
A waitress came with two cups and a pot of coffee. “Hi, folks.
My name’s Maddie. You want coffee?”
“Yes, thanks,” Hagen said.
Maddie sized them up as she filled the cups. “You look like
you’re having a rough day.”
Ceara nodded, her eyes downcast.
Hagen answered, “You might say that.”
“I saw you pull up in that fancy car. We don’t see many of those
come through. You don’t quite fit the picture of folks who can afford a
Rolls-Royce. You’re obviously a nurse, and I’ll bet you know car engines inside
and out.”
“You have a good eye.” Hagen picked up his coffee cup.
“It’s part of the job. You wait tables as long as I have,
you eventually see it all. After a while, it’s easy to peg the profession.
Wherever you came from, you must have left in a hurry.”
“Why’s that?”
“Most people wear coats and hats on cold winter days.”
“They’re out in the car.”
From the narrow slant of her eyes, she clearly didn’t believe
him. “So…passing through town or needing a place to stay?”
“Passing through. Headed for Louisville to see family.”
She spoke over her shoulder. “Thanks, Ralph.” To Ceara, Maddie observed, “From the looks of your face and the blood on your uniform, you’ll want to clean up. The restrooms are just off the kitchen.”
Ceara didn’t look up. “Thank you.”
“You just missed the lunch crowd. We’ve still got a couple of
specials left. Meat loaf and mashed with apple pie baked fresh this morning.
It’s hot and quick. You can get on down the road in a jiffy.”
“Thanks. It sounds good.” Hagen asked Ceara, “Okay with
you?”
She nodded.
“Two specials and keep the coffee coming. Couple of glasses
of water when you have the chance.”
Hagen took his break when Ceara returned. She divided her attention between the Rolls and the hallway, anxious for Hagen to return. Maddie brought their food as Hagen slid into the booth. Ceara couldn’t remember when her least favorite meal tasted so good.
I’d love to hear your meat loaf stories. Seriously...
Until next time,
Kaye Spencer
Writing through history one romance upon a time
Clip art images from clipart.com
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