Well…school started and life around here is crazy. With one swish of the calendar, the Shrock house has fallen back into organized chaos. And dinners are more challenging…

On the way home from school today Ridley asked what was for dinner. “Meatloaf,” I said. He responded that meatloaf tastes good, but the name sounds disgusting. We agreed to have a contest to rename meatloaf. Ridley chose “meat brick” which we decided wasn’t much better. All of our talk about changing meatloaf’s name made me think outside the box. I decided to put my meatloaf mixture in a cupcake pan. That way it would get completely done in the middle (this is an issue I’ve had in the past), and there would be sweet ketchup on every bite (my favorite part). And guess what…it worked!

Dinner isn’t pretty these days (just look at this photo), but it does the job. And as for our organized chaos? We are making it one day at a time. Tonight’s dinner may not have sounded good or looked good, but it sure did taste good!

2 pounds meatloaf mix – I like Acme’s beef and pork mix

1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs

1/3 cup milk

1 egg

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 tablespoon parsley

3/4 cup ketchup, divided

1/4 cup brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl combine the meat, breadcrumbs, milk, egg, spices and 1/2 cup of ketchup. Mix well with hands. Distribute the mixture evenly among each section of a 12 cup cupcake pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the meat is crispy on the edges and done in the middle. Mix the remaining ketchup and brown sugar in a small bowl. Spoon it evenly over each cupcake. Turn off the oven and place the pan back in for 2 minutes.

I served my meatloaf cupcakes with good ol’ Bob Evans Mashed Potatoes and frozen corn. Quick and easy!