BH&G Cooking for Two: Oven Meatballs in Barbecue Sauce

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by yinzerella

double up

MEATBALLS–TAKE TWO!

This is the second meatball dinner from the “Meals to Double-Up and Divide” of Better Homes & Gardens Cooking for Two (1977). To refresh your memory, the deal is that I made 48 meatballs and froze them up at Buckeye’s house. Twelve meatballs each will be used in 4 different preparations (a.k.a. Meatballs–Four Ways). I have already made Meatballs Stroganoff from the ‘Special Meal in Minutes’ menu. I enjoyed that dinner a lot, because it reminded me of IKEA’s Swedish Meatballs. So I went into ‘Late Night Snack’ featuring Meatballs in Barbecue Sauce with quasi-high expectations.

Late Night Snack

Although Mr. Buckeye and I totally didn’t have this as a late night snack. This was dinner. I mean, that’s one helluva late night snack. I don’t know about you, but I don’t wanna be making BBQ sauce after a night out. Just give me a DiGiorno.

Barbecue Sauce

I must say that the sauce was pretty boss:

bbq sauce

And here are the meatballs.

sauce and meatballs

kitchen freak out
WHERE ARE THE MEASURING CUPS?

Again, I truly apologize for my piss-poor photography. And real talk–everyone who has food blogs and all their photos are so pretty–do they actually eat the food right after they take the pictures?  Or do they make it solely for the photo? I need to know. Because if they are cooking and photographing and eating all in one fell swoop, then I am doing something horribly, horribly wrong. Of course, most times when I am cooking, I am running about like a chicken with my head cut off (see Exhibit A to the right). In this instance because I have no idea where the hell anything is in Mr. Buckeye’s kitchen.  But, honestly, I am like this most times in my own home. I am a genuine hot mess.

I also just wanted to post that picture because it looks like I have a tiny waist.

But back to Late Night Snack (which was dinner).

For the chips I went all-in Baltimore-style with Utz. Because Utz are Better than Nuts.  And Crab Chips are the shit. They are potato chips covered in Old Bay. They give me life.

UTZ

Here’s the finished product (complete with Ranch-covered crisp relishes):

meatballs in barbecue sauce

How cute is that little dinner? And it couldn’t have been any simpler.

For dessert it said fruit and cheese. Well I definitely went with the fruit but the cheese–chocolate is a little bit dairy, right?

chocolate covered strawberries

Strawberries were on super-discount so I made chocolate-covered ones with one of the containers of waxy chocolate melty dip. You know the stuff–it’s always next to the berries. All you need is a microwave and waxed paper. Done and done. And, most importantly, delicious.

Now, I have to tell you–the best thing about this dinner and this BBQ sauce was that—dare I say—it reminded me of the McRib?

I shit you not.

Throw some pickle chips and sliced onion on these little sammys and it’d be like McRib’s distant midget cousin.

If only!

That is, if the McRib lived on the East Coast and the midget cousin lived in Wyoming. And they only ever got together for weddings and funerals. So, like, related, and connected by genetics, but totally different–like the little meatball sandwiches are die-hard Republican, National Rifle Association members and the McRib is a bleeding heart liberal who fights the death penalty.

So basically not really alike at all.

I think I’m just really jonesing for a McRib. Shit, why aren’t they in Maryland yet?

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yinzerella

0 thoughts on “BH&G Cooking for Two: Oven Meatballs in Barbecue Sauce”

  3. I used to own the BH & G Cooking For Two cookbook. I got it as a wedding shower gift in 1978. Lost it years ago, but SO FUN to see you using it! I used to make those meatballs all of the time!

  4. I totally saw a lady with a beehive today and thought of you! Turns out, she was in her car and had a really big headrest…but still. I saw big hair. Small car. And thought “Emily”!

  5. Chicken’s with their heads chopped off don’t wear hi-heels, or we would have an awful lot of broken chicken legs!

  6. Photographing food in my house is a pain in the arse. Either there is no light, in which case the falsh comes on and they pictures are all reflections, or there is just enough light so the falsh doesn;t come on and then the picture is semi-dark. And I usually cock up the finished shot because everyone is screaming for food. Or I’m pissed.

    1. YES.
      THIS.
      I am happy that I am not alone. My issues are just the same.
      And I do admit that if I didn’t drink so much during my cooking, my photos may be a tad better 🙂

  7. I’m in the dark place when it comes to the photos. Dinner that normally takes an hour to prepare now takes a day. It looks great but my portion is always cold when I get to it. Not quite cold because the studio lights I have in the kitchen keep it mildly tepid. Mmmmmm tepid….

    On the McRib thing. You are plumbing depth I did not think could be plumed.

    1. You do take the best photos, Conor.

      Hm. Maybe I’ll just have to accept that my photos will never be pretty.

      It’s no biggie. Let’s face it–no one is reading my blog as food porn.

      1. That did the trick, thank you. You look freaking adorable in heals and pink apron. So much so who cares that your pics came out blurry.

  9. I always crack up reading your blog. Re pictures – After a couple of years using a Nikon Cool Pix with a Food Setting (seriously) I succumbed to the iPhone 5 and haven’t looked back. I do eat what I cook, usually shortly after snapping multiple pix and hoping for good results. For night time photos, I put the food under/near a Verilux light that simulates natural daytime lighting; I got the Verilux for a steal years ago. Also have heard that a lightbox is pretty cheap/easy to make – a cardboard box, white paper, two cheap lights with bulbs that simulate daytime.

  10. I saw people on FB say it’s in Illinois now. Maybe u can get one fedexed.

    As for pictures, I just take them as I go. I make sure one dish is plated as nicely as possible and just snap a quick pic. Natural lighting and a damn good camera help. Tho the new iPhone had been wondrous for pix.

    1. Thank you for the tip. I guess my FujiFilm Fine Pix Z isn’t quite cutting it.
      I know that the cameras on smartphones are great–but I am holding out until my old school, non-smart phone dies and I am forced to replace it.
      I know that natural lighting is best–but most of my cooking is done at night. Any ideas?

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