Got (butter)Milk?

Do you ever buy an ingredient for a recipe and then end up throwing most of it away because you only needed a little bit and then had nothing else to do with it?  I hate throwing stuff away but that has happened to me more often than not with buttermilk. 
A couple weeks ago I was so excited to make Smitten Kitchen's Tomato-Glazed Meatloaves with Brown Butter Mashed Potatoes (do you have her book yet?  If not you should go buy it like, now).  The mashed 'taters in this recipe require buttermilk but that was not deterring me from my goal of making them whether I wasted half the carton or not.  Luckily for me, as I was perusing Pinterest one day that same week, I came across this banana bread recipe on Carrie's food board.  Another recipe needing buttermilk!  And so, not only did I use up my buttermilk but we also ate some seriously delicious foods for the week.

tomato-glazed meatloaves with brown butter mashed potatoes
for the glaze:
4 tsp. vegetable oil
1/4 c. tomato paste
2 tbsp. cider vinegar
2 tsp. honey
2 tsp. worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp. dijon mustard
1/4 tsp. table salt
for the meatballs:
2 slices sandwich bread
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 medium stalk celery, finely chopped
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
olive oil, for cooking
1 tsp. table salt, plus more for vegetables
freshly ground black pepper
2 lb. ground beef
1 tbsp. tomato paste
1 tsp. smoked paprika
1 tsp. dijon mustard
2 tbsp. worcestershire sauce
for the mashed potatoes:
 2 lb. yukon gold potatoes
8 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and browned
1 c. buttermilk
1 to 2 tsp. table salt
freshly ground black pepper
make the glaze:   combine glaze indgredients in a small saucepan, and simmer, whisking constantly, for 2 minutes.  set aside.
make the meatloaves: preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  tear the bread into chunks and then blend it, in a food processor, into breadcrumbs.  place the breadcrumbs in a large bowl.  add the onion, garlic, celery, and carrot to the food processor, and pulse it until they are finely chopped.  heat a large skillet over medium heat.  once the skillet is hot, coat the bottom with olive oil, and heat the oil for a minute; add the finely chopped vegetables.  season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring frequently, until they begin to brown, about 10 to 15 minutes.  add the vegetables to the large bowl with breadcrumbs, then add the remaining ingredients.  stir the ingredients together with a fork.  with wet hands, from the mixture into twelve 3-inch meatballs; each will weigh about 4 ounces.
bake meatloaves:  space meatballs so that they are not touching, in a baking dish.  drizzle or brush each meatball with a teaspoon or so of the tomato glaze you made ealrier, and bake until cooked through, about 20 minutes.  (an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of acooked meatball will register 160 to 165.)
make the mashed potatoes:  place the potatoes in a medium saucepan, and cover with cold water.  bring to a boil over high heat, and once it's boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer.  cook for 20 to 30 minutes, depending on your potato size; the potatoes are ready when a paring knife or cake tester can be inserted into the center with little resistance.  drain the potatoes, and wipe the pot dry.  peel the potatoes until they are completely peeled.  run the potatoes through a food mill (or mash them the old fashioned way*), then return them the mashed potatoes to your emptied saucepan.  add browned butter, buttermilk, salt and black pepper to taste.  do your best not to eat it all before guests arrive.
to serve:  serve with additional glaze on a bed of brown butter mashed potatoes.

my pic seriously doesn't do this justice.  

 

 

 Please just go buy the book now...

*in my house we mash potatoes by hand with a potato masher :)