Meatloaf Formula

This is one of the first things I learned how to cook post-vegetarianism. It's easy, and delicious and highly flexible.

Meatloaf Formula
Ingredients:
Loaf:
3-4 lbs. ground meat*
0-3 cups vegetables, diced small**
6 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 cups grains***
3 eggs

2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper

2 Tbs. herbs and spices****
vegetables for bottom of roasting pan*****

Optional: cheese stuffed
8-16 oz. cheese*****

Sauce:
1/2 cup onion puree (~1 onion)
3/4 cup BBQ sauce
1/4 cup mustard
1/4 cup sweetener (honey, agave, maple syrup)
1/4 cup hot sauce (sriracha, valentina's)
4 Tbs. tomato paste

Instructions:
1. Pre-heat oven to 375F.
2. Combine ground meat, diced vegetables, garlic, grains, eggs, s&p and herbs/spices. Combine well with hands or sturdy wooden spoon.
3. In a 11" x 9" pan (large roasting pan) spread a layer of sliced onion/vegetables to just cover bottom of pan.
4. Dump meatloaf mix onto counter.
- If stuffing with cheese: flatten into a rectangle shorter than long side of pan, 1" thick. Place cheese filling in the middle, and gently roll up sides of  loaf and pinch seam together. Carefully transfer to pan, flipping so seam side is down.
- If NOT stuffing with cheese: form loaf that is several inches shorter than long side of pan.

5. Make sure the meatloaf is centered in the pan, not touching any of the sides. This will create better texture on the meatloaf and prevent sticking to the pan. Flatten the top to give maximum surface area for the sauce.

6. Combine all sauce ingredients. Pour over loaf, trying to keep sauce from dripping over side of loaf and down onto pan.
7. Cook for 1.5-2 hours, until internal temperature reads 165F. Let rest 10-15 minutes before cutting into after taking out of oven.

* Ground Meat Examples:
- Traditional: 2-3 lbs. ground beef + 1 lb. ground pork
- Premium: 2-3 lbs. ground bison + 1 lb. lardons
- Poultry: 2-3 lbs. ground turkey + 1 lb. bacon

** Vegetable Examples:

Vegetables need to be diced very fine so they don't compromise the structural integrity of the meatloaf. I recommend using raw veggies nut you can use cooked.
- Traditional: 1 onion + 1 green bell pepper
- Summer Garden: 1 cup shredded zucchini + 1 cup onion + 1 cup shredded kale

*** Grain Examples:
- Traditional: old-fashioned oats or bread-crumbs
- Alternatives: rolled oats, quick oats, rice, barley, quinoa

**** Herb & Spice examples:
- Traditional: Italian seasoning
- Indian: garam masala, turmeric, chili powder, toasted cumin and mustard seeds
- French: oregano, rosemary, thyme

***** Cheese examples:

- Cheddar, mozzarella, herbed goat cheese log, brie chopped with cranberries, cream cheese mixed with chopped pecans

***** Vegetables for bottom of roasting pan:

You want, at minimum, a thin layer of veg at the bottom to prevent burning and sticking of the meatloaf to the pan. The meatloaf drippings also make the vegetables delicious. You can go heavy here on the veg though if you'd like it to be a built-in side dish. Do not slice or chop your veg too small, as the meatloaf has a long cook time and you may run the risk of burn and over cooked veggies.

- minimum; 2 lbs. onion, cut into big slices/wedges/half moons or large diced

- heavy: 5 lbs. potatoes, large cubed and 2 lbs. onions

Reuben Bread Pudding

This was a hit when I brought it into breakfast for work the day before St. Pat's. Made a double-batch and went home with two servings!

Reuben Bread Pudding
adapted from Taste of Home

Ingredients:
- 1/2 lb. rye bread, cubed
- 2 Tbs. butter, melted
- 1 lb. cooked corned beef, shredded or cubed
- 1 head green cabbage
- 3 Tbs. olive oil
- 1 Tbs. caraway seed
- 3 Tbs. white vinegar
- 8 oz. Swiss cheese, shredded
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup milk
- 1/3 cup Thousand Island dressing
- 1/2 Tbs. mustard
- 1/4 tsp. pepper

Instructions:
1. Peel off outer layer of cabbage on head. Slice into quarters. Remove stem, then shred cabbage.
2. Head olive oil in a large pan on medium-high heat. Add caraway seeds and saute for 1 minute.
3. Add cabbage, and cook until soft and browning. Stir in vinegar, and set cabbage aside.
4. Pre-heat oven to 350F.
5. In a large bowl, toss cubed rye bread with melted butter. Then stir in corned beef, 2 cups of cabbage, and 4 oz. of the shredded Swiss. Spread evenly into a 11"x7" baking pan.
6. In a medium bowl, combine eggs, milk, Thousand island dressing, mustard, and pepper. Whisk well to combine.
7. Pour custard evenly over bread/beef mixture in pan.
8. Bake for 30 minutes. After 30 mins, take out of oven, sprinkle on remaining Swiss cheese, and bake for another 5-7 minutes until cheese is turning golden and a knife comes out clean from center of bread pudding.

Multiple Guitar Wall hangar

My friend's husband has a large collection of guitars. She complained that they took up too much room in the garage, and I thought I could help!

This is one of the first larger projects I did using the 3D printers at work.

Guitar brackets:
The guitar hangers I used are these: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:50723
The 85mm arm file worked out the best regardless of guitar style.

Mainly what I learned was some basic principles about structural 3D printing:
- print 60% infill or greater
- for downward force, print object at 45 degree angle. In this case, print the guitar hangars arm bottoms flat on the print plate

All of the guitars here are 25lbs or less.

Materials:
- 2"x4"x8' or longer, depending on how many guitars you wish to mount
- 5 - 2"x4"x4" or so blocks to mount to studs
- printed brackets

Instructions:
1. Mount short 2"x4"x4" pieces to studs on wall where you wish to wall mount guitars.
2. Mount long 2"x4" length onto the wall stud pieces.
3. Screw on printed brackets to long 2"x4" piece, spaced 1' apart (or more depending on guitar body).