freakanomics. and meatloaf.

 i was reading freakanomics recently. Yeah, i’m late to the game. I have a tendency not to read books when everyone is reading them, and i’ll read them at my own time. Literary trendiness is too much for me to bear. It’s the same way how i never really relish book reviews in the guardian – it’s all very well someone liking a book or thinking it sucks, i’d like to make up my own mind, in my own time and not have someone tell me.

Freakanomics is an enjoyable read. it made me ask my own questions. Like why do good restaurants always go downhill after a certain period of time? Is it just complacency of the chefs, or is there a larger price question at hand, some tipping point in which restaurants tip from excellent to unbearable? It brought to mind my time in Chicago, where at law school, the economic analysis of law was the constant theme running through all the classes. “Fair” was the four letter word one never dared utter in class. What’s the price of “fairness” and how does economic efficiency reflect itself in that concept? It was extremely capitalist. A far cry from the more socialist approach at the LSE where our classes revolved around the indictment against all big, bad and evil corporations and we were challenged to look at the wider range of stakeholder interests, which generally included the society at large.

Freakanomics also made me think of meatloaf. Not the aged rockstar (though there’s a whole other story there). Meatloaf – the food. I admit it isn’t the most straightforward of connections to make, but allow me to explain.  It’s not that complicated. This guy i dated while in Chicago, AF, was quoted in Freakanomics. He wrote a paper while doing his phd in economics and said some clever things which were quoted in the book. AF really likes meatloaf. AF’s idea of a gourmet meal out was meatloaf from the boston kitchen. There was also that time i almost killed him by suggesting dinner at our neighbourhood Hyde Park thai restaurant – he’s allergic to peanuts and they cooked everything in peanut oil. The date ended in A&E. I guess i knew it was never going to work out when i realised he wasn’t a foodie. I’m not sure i can be in a relationship with someone who doesn’t obsess over food like i do.

Anyway, meatloaf. I haven’t eaten it since all that time ago in Chicago with AF. Meatloaf with mash and gravy. It’s comfort food. And it’s comfort food season.

 

I pretty much followed the recipe (http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/09/my-favorite-meatloaf/) on The Pioneer Woman’s blog. That woman is genius. She almost makes me want to marry a farmer. Actually she just makes me hungry.

The only part i deviated from was the ketchup glaze, only because i don’t like ketchup. So I made a glaze with Sriracha instead. I would have eaten this with a velvety mash (in they style of Robuchon artery clogging butteryness) and bisto. But i didn’t because i didn’t have potatoes. Don’t’ judge me for eating Bisto - it makes me happy.