"M" is for Meat-loaf, Meatballs, Mussels & Mummers

There are lots of great "M" words.  Here are a few of my favorite:

This is my sister-in-laws recipe for meatloaf - I use the recipe all the time, sometimes as a loaf, but mostly as meatballs.  I usually make a sweet & sour type sauce for them, which  I have included at the bottom.

Sharon Burry's "Best Ever" Meatloaf

1     egg                              2/3 cup milk
1 1/2 cup bread crumbs      1 onion, chopped very fine
1/2 cup shredded carrot      1 cup grated cheese(cheddar)
1 1/2 lb lean ground beef     1/2 cup each of red & green pepper (diced finely)

Beat egg & milk, add to remaining ingredients, press into a sprayed loaf pan.
Bake for 40 minutes at 350*,  Remove from oven and cover with sauce, returning
to oven for another 20 minutes.

Sauce:
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tbsp prepared mustard
Beat together until smooth and pour over loaf.

This meatloaf is delicious!!
I use the loaf recipe and form into balls, bake in a 350* oven for 30minutes.  Remove
from oven and drain any excess liquids. Then pour sauce over top and return to oven for another 30 minutes


Sauce for meatballs:

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup vinegar
1/2 cup ketchup
1 cup water
1/4 cup each of finely diced onion, green and red peppers, carrots and celery
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan, bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes.
Thicken with cornstarch, if desired.  Pour over meatballs. 
    

The next "M" thing I 'll share is Mussels.  In June month, we can go out into Freshwater Bay, off of Hare Island and get mussels.  Ideal time of day, of course is at low tide.  You can actually rake the mussels off the rocks.  Once they are brought in, there is lots of work.  We put them into large tubs of water and scrub the shells with wire brushes.  Now they are ready to cook.  We eat lots while we are shelling them and preparing them for bottling. 

Ready to be shelled!

 

 

 

                                              
 Here they are, ready to go into the jars!

 

To get this many bottles of mussels is a full, hard days work----but worth it!!

Lastly, let's talk about Mummers!

Mummering is a centuries-old tradition that takes place over the12 days of Christmas in the 

outports of Newfoundland.  It involves dressing up in interesting (to say the least!) disguises, going 

visiting and getting into a bit of mischief.  

Below are a couple of pictures of my paintings of "Mummers".  The top one is finished, bottom 

one is still not quite completed.  These are just whimsical fun paintings---

all the rules are thrown out when working on these.

"L" is for Labrador , Lassy Buns and Licorice Tea

These are just three L words that I want to share.

Labrador is the other half of Newfoundland & Labrador.  What a magnificent place!!  It is called "The Big Land". Please take a minute visit this link or Google images of Labrador.  If you Google for images, type in Labrador, NL

We had a Labrador retriever once.  Her name was Velvet--what a dog!!  Here's picture of a retriever--they love the water!

On my long weekend, I made "Lassy Buns".  I took a few pictures to post with recipe!

 

 "Lassy" Molasses Buns

1             cup fancy molasses

1             cup melted butter

3/4         cup milk

4 1/2       cups flour

1              cup sugar

2              tsp cinnamon

2              tsp cloves

2              tsp baking soda

1              egg

Add melted butter to molasses and stir, then add milk & egg 

and blend well.

Combine with all dry ingredients and mix well.  Should have 

a soft,  pliable dough--add a little milk if too dry.

Roll out on a floured surface to about 1/2 inch thickness. 

Cut into desired shapes and place on a greased cookie sheet.   

Bake in a 350* oven for 18-20 minutes.  

Watch carefully as the molasses can burn very quickly.

This is a traditional baked item in the homes of Newfoundland and Labrador.
NOTE****
Make sure the molasses you buy if "fancy" - it's the sweet table molasses, the other one is very bitter.

Last, but certainly not least...my favorite tea......Egyptian Licorice

What's your favorite tea---or are you a coffee person??

"K" is Kennebunkport, Maine & "K-OS" the cat

We took a Canada/New England  cruise last September out of NYC.  One of the ports of call was Portland Maine.  While there, we took a short bus tour into Kennebunkport,  It was glorious....clean, serene and simply beautiful.  People there were super friendly and it was such a treat.  The weather was beautiful that day--about 15 degrees Celsius and sunny.   

We came upon this nice tavern and went upstairs on the back deck and had a snack......

This is a pic of Roger's lobster roll from the Drydock---it was delicious!!!  I had a crab salad wrap...ymmmm

We tried this local beer---Allagash---and it was really good.

To close off my "K" day, here's a picture of K-os, our daughter's cat.  K-os is a beauty, she is the ultimate lap-cat.

Cheers everyone--hope you have a great day!!

"J" is for Jiggs Dinner & Joy

Jiggs Dinner is about as traditional a meal as you can get in Newfoundland & Labrador.  Not great for the cholesterol and calories,but DELICIOUS!!  I really don't know if there is much that taste better.  Imagine a beautiful piece of salted beef boiled in the pot with a peas pudding in a bag, all the vegetables and, if you're lucky, dumplings for dessert---Mmmm-mm!

I remember for us kids, mom would always cook loads of potatoes, because we thought we didn't like carrot, turnip and cabbage very well--ha ha.  She would mash our potatoes with lots of butter and we would get the leanest of the salt meat and some roasted chicken or beef.  Mom always did a roast of pork or beef  or a chicken with the Jiggs Dinner so there was gravy.  When I look back on it now, she must have been a magician because we all  had tons of whatever we wanted--then from the leftovers, she would make potato salads with the cold chicken or beef ....and lots of that as well.  How did she do that with just one chicken or roast??  I guess we can chalk it up to another magical memory of childhood.

JIGGS DINNER

• Jiggs Dinner
• 1 (3 pound) boneless corned beef brisket
• 1 1/2 cups yellow split peas
• 1 large head cabbage, quartered
• 1 medium turnip, peeled and cubed
• 6 carrots, peeled and cut in chunks
• 6 large potatoes, peeled
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 
•  
• Dumplings:
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons white sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 cup water

1. Cover the corned beef with cold water and soak overnight in the refrigerator.
2. Drain the beef and place in a large pot. Cover with fresh water. Place the yellow peas in a triple layer of cheesecloth and tie securely. Place the bag in the pot with the beef. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 2 hours.
3. After 2 hours, add the chopped cabbage, turnip, and carrots to the pot. Simmer for 20 minutes.
4. Add the potatoes and simmer an additional 20 to 25 minutes, or until all of the vegetables are fork tender.
5. While the vegetables are cooking, prepare the dumpling dough as follows: Combine the flour, sugar, and baking powder in a bowl, then add the water a little bit at a time to make a pasty dough. You may not need to add all of the water. Divide the dough into 6 balls. Be careful not to over-handle the dough.
6. During the last 5 to 10 minutes of simmering the vegetables, place the dough balls on top of the vegetables and cover with a lid. Allow the dumplings to steam in the pot for 7 minutes.
7. When the dumplings are cooked through, remove all ingredients from the pot and arrange on a warm serving platter. Remove the cooked peas from the cheesecloth bag and mash with the butter and black pepper. Serve with the beef and vegetables. 
8. Sometimes the dumplings are used as a dessert with fresh partridge berry jam or heated molasses - or can be eaten with the cooked dinner. 

Do any of you have a traditional meal local to your region??  I'd love to hear about it.

"I" is for Ice Fishing


One of our favorite winter activities is ice-fishing.We can leave our backyard, drive our snowmobiles for about two minutes and we connect with the Newfoundland and Labrador Trailway.  We then travel for about 5 miles to get to Gambo Pond. Lots of people enjoy this winter activity--it is so much fun.  You must dress warm though.  The wind can be pretty unforgiving on a open pond.  Gambo Pond is 18 miles long and there are beautiful cottages scattered all along the shoreline from one end to the other.  Some people really go all out and build ice-fishing shacks that can be towed behind their snowmobile.  This is great when the kids are small.  They are usually equipped with benches along the walls and a little wood-burning stove... and of course, holes cut in the floor to fish through! 

My favorite part of a day "on the ice", as we call it, is a "boil-up".  Roger cuts a few dry standing trees and drags them onto the ice.  He saws them up right on the ice and builds a fire.  We go prepared with an old rack to use as a cook surface.  We fry dough in butter and have beans, smoked fish, toast bread...whatever your little heart desires.  Nothing tastes better than food cooked on an open fire when it's about 8 below zero Celsius!!

And of course, to top off the day, there's nothing like catching a few trout -- The Gambo Pond trout are nice and pink and delicious!!

Here I am with the catch of the day--ha ha!

What are the common outdoor activities in your neck of the woods between January and April??