Mary's Meatloaf, Baked Balsamic Asparagus, and Mashed Potatoes

Aaaaaaaaand just like that, we have returned to the '50s to eat again. I don't know Mary, but I've been making her meatloaf for years. We hadn't had it in quite a long time, and Steve put in the request last weekend when I was planning out this week's meals. I let him do that, every once in a while.

I sub in a cup of oatmeal in place of half of the bread it calls for, and use Nu Salt, my latest Whole Foods discovery, in place of the regular salt.

This asparagus recipe  is seriously the only way I make asparagus. It is AMAZING. Like the meatloaf recipe, I've been making this one for many years. Per some Allrecipe reviewers, I flip the amounts for the soy sauce and balsamic vinegar -- 1 t. of the former and 1 T. of the latter. Also, it's key to brown the butter before adding those two ingredients (not just melt it).

As seems to be the trend lately, Steve, Gigi and I enjoyed the comfort food meal. The kids had peas and corn in place of the asparagus. Camden mostly just ate mashed potatoes (finally! A toddler who likes mashed potatoes! I will give him a pass on not eating much meat or veggies this time). Owen's still in the kitchen working on eating the minimum so I'll make his favorite meal of all-time tomorrow night, from scratch for the first time (foreshadowing...)