Meatloaf, Caramelized Onions, and Potato Cakes

Fri. Feb 2.
We usually try to celebrate Groundhog Day by cooking ground hog, i.e. pork, generally in some Chinese form like shu-mai or "Ants Climbing Tree." But Barbara was stuck at home waiting for the guys to deliver our new bed, and there was only ground beef in the freezer. Answer: the classic meatloaf, as last seen in our post of Nov. 6, 2006. The recipe is different every time, of course. This one had about as much minced celery as minced onion, and a squeeze of tomato paste instead of barbecue sauce. Also, this time I beat the egg and added everything BUT the meat and breadcrumbs to it, which made the mixing much easier. Should have figured that one out long ago, but it wasn't how my mother did it - did I say she was a lousy cook? Oh, and I used the remote-sensing thermometer, which told me exactly when the meatloaf came to the ideal 160-degree temperature.
Since I still wasn't going anywhere, I decided to caramelize the onions rather than just frying them. This means slow cooking over low heat, with the pan half-covered, for about an hour. The golden color doesn't come until the very end, when the onions have lost about three-quarters of their bulk. We served them on top of potato cakes, i.e. the previous day's mashed potatoes formed into patties, dipped into breadcrumbs, and shallow-fried. Comfort food at its best.