After the rain....

One of the best things about rain, is the wonderful smell that comes after.  I told Husband that I liked the smell of the wet earth and he immediately came back with, "You like the smell of mud?"  He is a funny one and I think I will keep him.  However, that wasn't quite what I was thinking about.  Maybe I should have said damp earth, but I'm sure he would have had something to say about that too.  The air always seems to be a lot cleaner and clearer too.  The sky looks bluer and the magical time right before sunrise just looks more spectacular than ever.

After the rain

Today, I tried another crock pot recipe that I saw online.  I'm hoping that it tastes as good as it looked when I left the house.  I made a Crock Pot Meatloaf.

2 pounds of ground beef (not too lean)
1/2 envelope of au jus mix
1/2 envelope of Italian Seasoning salad dressing mix
1 envelope of onion soup mix

Mash all this together and form a loaf in the crock pot.  Cut potatoes (I used baby reds) and place them around the loaf.  Cook on low for 6-7 hours.

**Next time I will add bread crumbs or cracker crumbs, a little milk or egg, and some bbq sauce into the meat.

Here is the before picture:

Pre-ketchup

I wasn't going to put the ketchup on the top of the meatloaf, but then decided that it would add a nice flavor to it.  I meant to drizzle it in an artistic way, but this is how it ended up...

with ketchup!

Husband and I will taste test this when we get home before we go see the Fish play volleyball.  Not sure if there will be any left over for her.  Maybe she didn't notice that there was something in the crock pot when she left this morning.  Wait a minute...Fish not notice food?  Ha ha ha!!!  She is so much like her mother.  He he he.

Meatloaf update:  It was delicious.  Next time, I would mix some bread or cracker crumbs and bbq sauce into the meat before cooking.  The meat tasted good, but it was a little dry and had a crumbly texture.  I think that the crumbs paired with the sauce might hold more moisture in.  We'll try an updated version next week.  The potatoes were really good, but I think they absorbed most of the liquid, therefore drying out the meat a bit.  Tomorrow night, I might try a cream of broccoli soup.  Depends on how adventurous I get.