Living in Miami has plenty of perks… golf, beach, sun, countless Latin eateries and Salsa clubs, but one added bonus is living closer to my family in Homosassa, Florida, a small town on the gulf coast of Florida infamous for their Manatees and Natural Springs (and no, manatee parks are not children’s playgrounds, manatees are water dwelling creatures).

After a practically sleepless weekend of Country Bars, Scalloping, Boating and relaxing in the country, Sunday afternoon was a day for family to have a home-cooked lunch before our drive back to the hustle bustle of South Beach.

Food in my family is the heart of our laughs, one generation passing down recipes, stories and lessons to the next. The preparation of a good meal is just as important as conversing around the dinner table.

My Aunt Dot is KNOWN for her meatloaf, so not having been able to visit with her in quite some time, she whipped up her infamous dish, explaining her techniques (which does not include typical measuring… handfuls and dashes are the Southern Metric, so I tried to guess-ti-mate the portions).


Aunt Dot’s Meatloaf:
- Mix the following ingredients and form into a meatloaf-
2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
1/2 bell pepper, finely chopped
1 large sweet white onion, finely chopped
1 egg
1/2 cup of milk
1 cup of oatmeal
2 lbs of Ground Beef
1 lb of Ground Sausage (spicy or mild, whichever your taste)
Salt
Pepper
- Bake meatloaf until thoroughly cooked -
- Mix the following ingredients and baste onto the top of meatloaf -
1 cup of ketchup
1/2 cup of brown sugar
- Allow topping to crisp, about 7 minutes -

The next dish that we prepared, which I could eat every day, was my Aunt Sharon’s Squash and Zuchinni. This dish takes about 45 minutes to cook, so I would start this early.

Aunt Sharon’s Zucchini and Squash
- Saute the following ingredients -
2 table spoons of oil
1 onion, sliced
- Wait for onions to soften -
- Add the following ingredients gradually, in stages, as they will cook down and provide more room in a large pot/frying pan -
1 1/2 lb’s of Squask
2 large Zucchinis
- Salt & Pepper to taste -
- Add 3 Slices of Bacon, chopped, once all zucchini is cooking (this is not necessary, but Aunt Sharon had extra bacon from breakfast… it adds a smokey, meaty flavor… DELISH)

The weekend was a blast, full of countless laughs, great meals, catching up with the family and fond memories, a great way to celebrate the 4th.