In college, Jesse had his first taste of meat loaf prepared at a school cafeteria. His friends warned him of the experience of tasting the cafeteria meat loaf, or mystery meat entree as they called it. What did Jesse find? Was it up to his expection of the deliciously prepared version at home? Would it bring comforting memories of family dinners during his childhood?

At first, he noticed the generic blandness of the gravy. It did nothing but moisten the industrially prepared mashed potatoes that accompanied it. The gravy was prepared from a package, and it made no pretense of being anything else. A bit disappointed, Jesse decided to take a bite of the meat loaf. He did not recall meat loaf needing to be cut with a knife. The way that his mother had prepared meat loaf simply recquired a fork.

The meat loaf was tough. It was overcooked. Even the filler, which Jesse thought had been overmeasured because the meat loaf seemed to have plenty of, was tough. It reminded him of either cardboard or particle board. The taste reminded him of meat extract. This was not very comforting. Although this first experience of cafeteria meat loaf was not very pleasant, Jesse would continue to call meat loaf a comfort food.

Yahoo! News Search Results for comfort foods
Yahoo! News Search Results for comfort foods

Taste: Mac ?n? cheese
With fall peeking its cool head around the corner, the season for comfort foods is fast approaching. Forget mashed potatoes and fried chicken -- here it?s all about the quintessential macaroni and cheese.
10 decadent foods with half the guilt
(Photo: Getty Images) It's hardly a secret that cooking fresh foods at home is better for your health, waistline, pocket book, and the planet than choosing packaged foods or eating take-out. Does that mean you can eat anything you want as long as you prepare it yourself? Unfortunately, most of us need to steer clear of high-calorie foods that contain too much fat and salt. But this doesn't mean ...
The gym will totally still be there after you finish that creme brulee.
Japanese BENIHANA VILLAGE Las Vegas Hilton, 732-5111. Japanese tabletop cooking at its finest. The chefs deliver great steaming-hot food, as well as an entertaining show.
Program focuses on healthy cooking for elders
Shane Valentine?s latest book may be ?Baby Cuisine,? but it was easy for him to shift to creating recipes for the elderly. ?It?s the same thought process,? he said.
Local Flavor: Olyvia's Italian Eatery
This week's Local Flavor takes us to a neighborhood eatery in Berks County.
Orphanage Donation
Tim Rose, Tyson Foods, presents a check to W.A. Dillard, trustee for the Texarkana Baptist Orphanage for $4,585. The money was raised from the fifth annual Tyson Golf tournament to benefit the orphanage. The orphanage will use the money for their educational programs.
USO still sparkles in modern day
When the USO is mentioned, it conjures up visions of World War II canteen dances or overseas tours by Bob Hope. People in Shelby County who aren?t directly involved in the military might not realize that lively USO facilities still exist at Camp Atterbury in Edinburgh and at the Indianapolis International Airport.
Bring home the bakery
The West Bend 41300 Hi Rise Bread Maker features programmable options allowing for anyone to enjoy the scent of freshly baked bread in their own kitchen. Complete with a bake delay option, the bread maker is capable of greeting users returning home from work with a loaf of freshly baked bread.
Cashing in on comfort
By EMILY BRYSON YORK CHICAGO TRIBUNE Tough times call for some serious comfort food, and macaroni and cheese is a staple of that category. That's added up to a nice payday for manufacturers. As a whole, macaroni and cheese sales are up 25 percent over the last four years, to $802 million. Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Dinner accounts for the vast majority of category growth, which likely means more ...
Answer Man: Papaya, pineapple and pregnancy
Should pregnant women avoid eating papaya or pineapple? The Answer Man dispenses some medical advice, to wit: Talk to a doctor, not me.