Day 24 Or... Meatless Loaf

I've always enjoyed meatloaf much more than the average person. Trust me. There's probably a bar graph somewhere to prove it, or at least there should be. I'm probably the only reason that the meatloaf sandwich exists on menus of restaurants like Cracker Barrel.

So, when I gave up meat, you can imagine that I had written off meatloaf as something I couldn't enjoy for 40 days. It's a loaf of meat for crying out loud.

Then, while browsing some vegetarian recipes at the Morningstar Farms website, I came across a recipe for "meatless loaf." It sounded like an oxymoron to say the least... perhaps the equivalent of hot ice cream or toast without bread. Yet, the curiosity got the best of me and I made it for dinner tonight.

Using some TVP crumbles, onions, celery, bread crumbs, eggs, Italian seasoning and ketchup, I waited patiently as the concoction baked in the oven for an hour. It smelled fantastic, but my experience in vegetarian cooking has told me that a pleasing smell doesn't guarantee good eats.

My beautiful wife and I raised our forks and gave each other a quick look of uneasiness, then we took our first bite. At that point, Isaiah was already verbally asking for more, but that wasn't enough to set our minds at ease.

I have to tell you that it honestly tasted amazing. It obviously didn't taste exactly like meat, but it did taste savory and flavorful. Carolyn pointed out that it tasted like Stovetop stuffing and in a way it did. At the same time, it also tasted a lot like the traditional meatloaf that I had been missing for weeks. I didn't have to pep talk myself into thinking that it tasted fabulous, because it really was great. We demolished almost the entire half-pound of "meatless loaf."

This goes to show you, that you can't judge a book by its cover and you can't judge a recipe by its name.

- What did I eat on Day 24?

Breakfast. Honey Graham Ohs. The box is almost empty, luckily it reminds me that Honey Graham Ohs are "always a great value!"

Lunch. Leftover vegetarian fajitas... not so good.

Dinner. New recipe #12: Meatless loaf courtesy of those good folks at Morningstar Farms. I've had a love-hate relationship with Morningstar Farms over the past 24 days, but this recipe was as easy as making ordinary meatloaf and it tasted great! I also had mashed potatoes and green beans on the side. Tasty. "Meatless loaf" sounds beyond strange, but even Carolyn agrees that this is one of the best things I've made during the Go Veg Project.

A success!
24 days down. 16 days to go.