Favorite Recipes for a cold day

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Favorite Mac and Cheese - Country Meat Loaf with Tomato Relish - Summer Berry Cobbler

Favorite Mac and Cheese

• 1 pound elbow macaroni
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 cups milk
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 cups plus 1/2 cup shredded sharp Cheddar

1. Cook the macaroni in boiling water for about 10 minutes until tender but still firm. Drain well and set aside.
2. In a deep skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour to make a roux and cook, stirring, to remove any lumps.
3. Pour in the milk and cook until the mixture is thick and smooth.
4. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Stir in 2 cups Cheddar and continue to cook until melted.
6. Add the cooked macaroni and stir.
7. Transfer the mixture to a 2-quart casserole dish.
8. Bake in a preheated 350-degree F oven for 20 minutes.
9. Remove the casserole from oven, top with remaining 1/2-cup cheese.
10. Bake for an additional 5 minutes until hot and bubbly.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes

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Country Meat Loaf with Tomato Relish

Tomato relish:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 red bell peppers, seeded and chopped
• 2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 12 ounces bottled ketchup

Meat Loaf:

• 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
• 1 pound ground pork
• 3 eggs
• 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
• Salt and pepper, to taste

1. For the tomato relish, coat a skillet with olive oil and place over medium heat. Sauti the garlic, bay leaves, and onion together until they caramelize.
2. Add the red peppers and cook until soft. Add the tomatoes, parsley and Worcestershire sauce, cook for 10 minutes until the vegetables cook down.
3. Stir in the ketchup and continue to cook until heated through, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
4. In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground beef and pork together with your hands.
5. Fold in 1/2 cup of the tomato relish. Add the eggs and thyme and mix with both hands just until blended. Do not over mix or the meat loaf will become dense and tough.
6. Season with salt and pepper.
7. Coat a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan with nonstick spray. Fill the loaf pan with the meat mixture, mounding it a bit on top. Generously spoon some tomato relish on the surface.When cooked, this will form a top crust.
8. Place the loaf pan on a cookie sheet and bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until the meat loaf has pulled away from the sides of the pan.
9. Remove from pan, allow to cool slightly before cutting into slices. Serve with remaining sauce on the side.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours

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Summer Berry Cobbler

• 1 pint blueberries
• 1 pint raspberries
• 1 pint blackberries
• 1 pint strawberries, hulled and sliced in half
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar, plus more, for dusting
• Pinch cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1 recipe Blueberry Scone Dough, recipe follows
• Melted butter

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a mixing bowl, combine berries with sugar, cinnamon, cornstarch and lemon juice.
2. Stir gently to combine. Spread berry mixture out on a 10-inch tart or gratin dish.
3. Dollop spoonfuls of scone dough evenly over the top of the fruit; leave a border around the edge of the dish for spreading.
4. Drizzle the surface with melted butter and dust with sugar.
5. Set on a cookie sheet and bake for 25 to 35 minutes until the top is golden brown and the fruit juices bubbling.
6. Cool for 15 minutes before serving. Serve with heavy cream, whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

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