Right off the bat, this recipe morphed. It became Mom's Meatloaf, because I made it, not Dad, although I would like my husband to make more dinners than he currently does. Yes, I enjoy cooking, but occasionally I would also enjoy putting my feet up in the living room and browsing recipes and horoscopes on my laptop while food is being prepared for me. (Suggested addition from Dad/husband: Although then he might have to cut back on the amount of time he spends changing the oil, mowing the lawn, and battling computer bugs in our various electronics.)

I made a few other changes to the meatloaf recipe: I reduced the amount of ketchup to half a cup instead of a whole bottle (again, because Mom was making this, not Dad), and I added a half cup of sour cream, a teaspoon of cumin, and a pinch of cayenne because I remember having meatloaf once with these things in it, and it was good. I also omitted the bay leaf, parsley, and thyme because my in-laws were coming over for dinner, and they hate herbs (they say the "h," like the Brits do, although my in-laws come from the Bronx). They are legendary herb hunters, in fact, sleuthing out any signs or sniffs of the stuff in a dish. "Are there are any herbs in this? Is that thyme? Is it the roseMARY?" (No one can explain this pronunciation either.) "All the chefs nowadays, they have to put the thyme and the roseMARY in everything."

I also made the meatloaf a day in advance, partly because I think heavy meat dishes are even better the next day and partly because my in-laws need to eat by 6 p.m. to avoid the dreaded after-dinner heartburn. "We wanna come over to eat, but we don't wanna get the agita!" (My in-laws are Jewish, by the way, not Italian.) The next morning's report was good: No reflux, and so delicious they ate too much, which is the highest form of compliment from these two characters, whom I love dearly.

Trisha Thompson is co-owner of Small Batch Books. She lives and cooks (also in small batches) with her husband, Fred, and her daughters Madeline (17) and Eleanor (14).