Bernie, Bernie, Oh Bernie!

Andy: I love lazy weekends with my Boo! You know those Saturdays you’re just snuggling on the couch watching a marathon of those murder mystery shows on the ID Network? OK, that sounds kind of creepy and it’s mostly me watching those while Julia is in the midst of a Pinterest black out, but I digress. If you love the mix of those and a doc block on MSNBC you will get a kick out of Bernie!

Bernie is filmed almost exactly like one of those “whodunit” shows - from the interviews with people who knew the real life victims and “perps” right down to the sometimes cheesy re-enactment segments. Jack Black plays the titular character Bernie and was a perfect choice for the role. The movie is a very dark comedy so you have Jack Black playing a watered downed zany as opposed to the normally off the wall School of Rock crazy. His character sings publicly at the funerals conducted by the funeral home at which he is employed and I must say Tenacious D, or not Jack Black, really does have a good singing voice.

Shirley MacLaine plays the ill-fated widow who Bernie befriends and not since Steel Magnolias have we seen a more loathsome character played by the Hollywood legend. Unfortunately, for MacLaine’s character no matter how nice and good hearted somebody is (Bernie) we all can take just so much.

Matthew McConaughey plays the DA out to put Bernie away despite the uphill battle of the town’s disbelief that Bernie- who gives money to everybody else but himself- could commit such a horrible crime. Wooderson was good in the movie but barely in it at the same time. I feel like a girl, “More McConaughey!”

So, next time you find yourself getting sucked into another MSNBC doc block or Scorned: Love Kills on the ID Channel rent Bernie! 

Julia: I definitely agree with Andy on this one - more Matty McConaughey (now I digress)! While watching Bernie, we enjoyed bacon topped BBQ turkey meatloaf.  Let's just say it was to die for!  This sinful recipe comes to you courtesy of a blog I found through Pinterest :) I have tried out a few recipes on this site and they never disappoint.

I modified the recipe a bit, mostly because of my lack of baking pan selections.  Instead of mini meatloaves, I just made one large meat loaf which was delicious but sadly took much longer to cook.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup grated zucchini
• 2 tbsp onion, minced
• 2 tbsp diced red pepper
• 1/2 cup Italian style breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup Jack Daniels Honey Smokehouse BBQ
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1.5 lb raw lean ground turkey
• 3 slices precooked turkey bacon, cut in half
• 2 1/2 tbsp Jack Daniels Honey Smokehouse BBQ Sauce

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 350° and lightly spray the pan with oil.
• Mix the zucchini, onion, red pepper, breadcrumbs, 1/4 cup BBQ sauce, egg, paprika, kosher salt and ground turkey in a large bowl.
• Transfer the mixture into your pan.
• Cut the turkey bacon slices in half, place on top of the meatloaf and coat with the remaining BBQ sauce
• Cooking time will vary depending on the size of the pan so keep checking after about 30 minutes.

P.S. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a photo of the finished product (likely due to the longer cooking time and ravenous newlyweds) so I have supplied the photo above from Pinterest.

P.P.S. If you are a Clevelander, please sing the post title in the style of the "Bernie, Bernie" Superbowl song.  I had to throw that in there in honor of the Browns win this past Sunday.