Maid Rites

I guess it is a Midwest thing, but loose meat sandwiches are great. I particularly like the ones made at Maid Rite. There aren't any Maid Rites where I live. This situation - loving a food and not being able to get it - is the main reason I learned to cook. My mother was a great cook, but when I moved away I never got any of that great food any more, and I missed it so much that I learned to cook. Since then there have been other great foods that I have moved away from, or feared moving away from. Gino's East is a prime example. I didn't have to do near as much work on the Maid Rite recipe to get it right. In fact, I didn't have to do any at all. I got the recipe from a friend DEEP in the Maid Right corporation and just adapted it to home use. Since we already had hamburger buns the next logical simple meal was Maid Rites.

Maid Rites

1 pound hamburger
6 oz coca-cola
salt and pepper

Put the meat in a pan and add the coke. Maid Rite was first made using coca-cola syrup but later they changed it to a proprietary syrup. I don't want to mess with finding the syrup although it is available. Instead I just use half a can of coke. Cook the meat and mash it into very fine particles. Season with salt and pepper. Let some of the liquid cook off. Drain the meat through a strainer and let sit for a few minutes before serving. I like mine with mustard, onion and dill pickle.

Chili Cheese Tater Tots

As a simple side, I like chili cheese tater tots. These are very easy to make. Just bake some tater tots in the oven according to the directions. Dump a can of Hormel beanless chili over and return to the oven until chili is heated and bubbling. Sprinkle a little shredded cheese over the top and return to the oven until it melts.