What is a feetloaf?
This time of year, there are plenty of too-gross-to-be-true foods out there, but of all the Halloween party hacks out there, there's one dish that will make make every guest's blood curdle: raw meat shaped like feet.
Feetloaf is probably one of those things that you really wish you could just unsee. The chunky texture of raw meat, egg yolk and breadcrumbs molded into two monstrous feet; coagulated ketchup dripping from the ankles (or what used to be ankles); the severed bones simulated by two marrow-like parsnips and — perhaps worst of all — the pallid, decaying toenails made from slivers of onion.
It's a nightmare. Actually, it's an edible nightmare.
Unfortunately (or fortunately?) for anyone who has ever laid eyes on this lecherous feast, it's actually delicious.
So where did feetloaf come from? Like many spooky legends, the origin is somewhat unknown. Five years before its viral comeback on social media ahead of Halloween this year, lifestyle expert Laurin Sydney presented feetloaf to Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb on TODAY.
"Oh!" Kathie Lee exclaimed. Hoda simply held her nose and smiled.
They quickly warmed to the feet, however.
"That's hysterical. That's a winner!" they both agreed as the looked closer.
According to the Washington Post, however, feetloaf has been circulating among cooking blogs as far back as 2009, when one poster reported finding the recipe in a pamphlet from their grocery store checkout line. Whether this concoction arose from the lab (er — kitchen) of Frankenstein or Dr. Jekyll, it's still a stroke of mad genius.
Plus, it's surprisingly easy to make!
Start by simply assembling the meat mixture of your favorite meatloaf recipe. You'll want to double most recipes to create two feet. Vegetarians will even be able to enjoy this Halloween dish by whipping up a nutrient-packed veggie "beet loaf" recipe.
Rather than molding the prepared mixture into a rectangular loaf, shape it like two feet — toes and all. At the ends where the ankles would be, nestle in a chopped parsnip round (onion rounds or carrots also work) to create ankle bones. On each toe, place a toenail-sized sliver of raw white onion. Drizzle ketchup wherever you'd like ... depending on how gruesome you want your feetloaf to be.
Then, after about 45 minutes in a 350-degree oven, the spooky masterpiece will be ready. It's alive! Well, we hope not ... but you get the idea.
For something slightly less creepy, you can always form meatloaf into other shapes for your Halloween party. Siri Daly's heart-shaped meatloaf with a little drizzle of ketchup is tamer but it still might be enough to get foodie hearts blood pumping.