A Meatloaf Extraordinaire

I have made so many really great meals lately, and haven't gotten them posted here. One of these was a meatloaf of all things. I am not over fond of meatloaf. Actually, I used to prefer it far more as cold leftovers on a meatloaf sandwich than hot the day it was made. 

One of my "beefs" (excuse the pun) about most meatloaves I have eaten elsewhere (not my own) is that raw onion goes in it, and even after the meatloaf is baked through, the onion is still raw enough to crunch, and so my stomach hurts for hours after. To remedy this, I always sauté my onion and garlic until they are truly caramelized and more flavorful. Problem solved. And complexity of flavor added!
 

Beef & Lentil Meatloaf Extraordinaire

There is a lot more to making a meatloaf tasty though, than just onion. Of late, I have been adding in a goodly amount of either shredded Parmesan or Romano cheese, as I do for meatballs as well. Most often I make meatballs with ground beef, and sometimes I add sausage. Not too long ago, I made some pork sausage meatballs, mixed half & half with cooked brown lentils, both to add fiber and to stretch the recipe. They were amazing! You can't really tell there are lentils (if you don't look closely) in the meatballs, and the other ingredients make the recipe taste delicious. I was relating this to my son, who is looking to improve his diet, and talking of adding lentils to meat dishes such as meatballs (or burgers or meatloaf), and my husband overheard the conversation. Later, he requested that I make something like that, with lentils added. I told him he had already been served this kind of mixture in past, quite a few times already! But I opted to do this again, and this time with a meatloaf. 

I have been gravitating more and more, when making meatloaves and meatballs, to some of the same ingredients, since they seem to really up the flavor factor by orders of magnitude. Some of these ingredients are as mentioned, such as a good amount of Parmesan or Romano cheese, and the sauteed, caramelized onions. I have at times added things like applesauce into the mix, and/or barbecue sauce. Sometimes I have switched out the Parmesan or Romano cheese for Gorgonzola (recipe here), which is exceptional! Sometimes I use quick cooking oatmeal as a binder, but I have used psyllium husks, flax and other things on occasion. 

So with no real plan in mind, I set about making a meatloaf with lentils. I cooked 1 cup of brown lentils for about 30 minutes, then drained and lightly mashed them, leaving a lot of them whole. I started adding things in and baked the meatloaves, which smelled heavenly. And my, these were just amazingly flavorful. Do not let the photos fool you into thinking this is another bland meatloaf. My husband loved them. And I will be making them again. And again! 

Beef & Lentil Meatloaf Extraordinaire 

Beef & Lentil Meatloaf Extraordinaire

Makes two (4 x 8-inch) meat loaves

1 cup brown lentils
3 cups water for cooking lentils
1 pound lean ground beef (or combination of beef and sausage meat) 
1 - 2 tablespoons olive oil, or oil of choice
1 onion, chopped
2 - 4 cloves fresh garlic, minced
4 large eggs 
½ cup barbecue sauce
1 cup freshly shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup 1-minute oats
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1½  - 2 teaspoons salt as desired
1½ teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, lightly minced

Set the lentils and water into a medium-large saucepan and bring to boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for about 30 minutes, until the lentils are tender. Drain, then allow to cool slightly. Mash with a potato masher, just to break up some of the lentils. Some should remain whole. Do not puree. You want texture.

Meanwhile, heat a skillet and add in the oil and the onions. Saute the onions, stirring often, until they are turning a caramel color. Add in the minced garlic and continue to cook, stirring, for about 3 more minutes. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place the ground beef in an large bowl, then add in the sauteed onion and garlic and all the remaining ingredients, including the cooked lentils. Thoroughly combine the mixture. Spray two loaf pans with cooking spray and divide the mixture between the pans evenly. Pat into a smooth rectangle and bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until internal temperature is at least 150 degrees. Wonderful served with mashed potatoes and green vegetable of choice.


My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Individual Meat Loaves a la Michael Symon

Watching "The Chew" the other day, Michael Symon made these little individual meat loaves, wrapped in bacon. As soon as I saw how easy they were, and then how much faster they bake (than a whole large meatloaf), I had to try them! The only step that takes any time at all is sauteing the onion, but I would do that anyway, as I really dislike crunching into undercooked onions in a meatloaf. It was already going on 3:45 PM when I came downstairs from my office yesterday. My husband likes his supper promptly at 5 PM, thank you.  I told him it might be a little later this evening.

Individual Bacon Wrapped Meat Loaf

I had thawed the meat earlier, so that was set. Michael Symon's recipe called for a pound of ground beef plus a half-pound each of ground pork and veal. I don't think they've heard of veal up here in these parts. I have never seen it. If they are going to raise cattle, by golly, they raise cattle! I used half and half beef and pork. I had bacon, thick sliced, which is the only kind I buy. I have been avoiding wheat and extraneous simple carbs, so I looked at the bread crumbs in his recipe and thought instead I would use psyllium husks. I keep them on hand for my daily dose of fiber anyway. Other than these changes, I pretty much followed his recipe.

Individual Bacon-Wrapped Meatloaf

They were most amazingly good! I was totally hooked. Of course I had not eaten meat for about 5 days, so maybe that helped them to taste so good, but I think the flavors were very hard to beat. Supposedly they were to be done at 35 minutes. The bacon on the outside, possibly because I used thick sliced, or possibly because on the show he said to set the oven at 400 degrees, where on the website they specified 375, was underdone at the 30 minute mark, so I increased the oven to 400 degrees and continued for 10 more minutes. If using thinner bacon, I am sure that may have been the case. Maybe next time (and there WILL be a next time!) I will just start out at 400 degrees and then they might be done at the 35 minute time.

There are really not a whole lot of things added to the meat; just simply onion and garlic, salt and pepper. The only other flavor additions are thyme leaves, which are visible in the photos, parsley and Worcestershire, and then the psyllium and an egg. Simple, easy and quick. While they baked, I made some mashed potatoes to contribute to my hubby's happiness, and supper was served, only 10 minutes late!

I will say, Michael divided the 2 pounds of meat into 6 portions. One of these portions was quite a bit more than I really wanted or needed in one sitting, though I certainly did it justice last night. I think I might make half of them this size for a manly portion, and the rest in smaller portions for me.

Just out of the oven - the house smelled heavenly

Individual Bacon Wrapped Meat Loaves

Serves 6

1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, chopped
2 - 4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, stripped from stems
2 tablespoons psyllium husks (can use 1/4 cup bread crumbs)
1 egg
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
¼ cup minced fresh parsley
2 teaspoons salt
pepper, to taste
12 strips bacon; more if making smaller portions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare a rimmed baking sheet by lining it with foil, for easy cleanup later. 

In a skillet, melt the butter over medium or medium low. Once butter is melted, add in the onions and saute until at least tender. I prefer them turning golden brown. Once nearing the point you prefer, add in the minced garlic and the thyme leaves. Stir and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes, until the rawness of the garlic is lessened. Allow this mixture to cool to just warm before adding to the remaining ingredients. 

Place the meats in a large bowl. Add in all the remaining ingredients except the bacon. Once cooled, add the onion mixture and stir to completely combine the ingredients. This can be done with hands or a spoon. Divide the mixture into 6 (or more) portions, as desired. Set two strips of bacon onto a surface, closely side by side. Make a ball of one of the portions of meat and set it towards one end of the bacon strips. Roll the bacon around the meat until the loose ends are underneath. Gently set the ball onto the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining bacon and meat portions. Bake the rolls for about 30 to 40 minutes, or until the bacon is done to your preference and the internal temperature of the meat is at least 155 degrees. 


My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

A Nice, Homey Meal in Between Parties

Last night I was in the mood for something that was homier; a comfort food, rather than holiday food. I am not over fond of meatloaf, but there isn't much that's more homey than that. I have made many meatloaf recipes over the years, including my mother-in-law's recipe, which is good. I guess last night I was just inspired, and this one turned out so delicious. Even while it was baking it was wafting heavenly smells about. I couldn't wait to try it out.

I had been looking through recipes, but nothing really called me. I got some ideas, and then just went with it. This is what I came up with:

Meatloaf Inspired

Meatloaf Inspired

2 pounds lean hamburger meat

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, chopped fine

4 cloves garlic, minced

3/4 cup walnuts, finely grated

4 tablespoons psyllium husks (or use bread crumbs)

2 small cans mushrooms, drained, chopped

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese

1/2 cup barbecue sauce

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup barbecue sauce, for top of meatloaf

Saute the onion in the olive oil until nicely browned, then add in the garlic to saute for another minute. Place the ground meat into a large bowl, and add in all the ingredients except the last 1/2 cup of barbecue sauce. Mix well with hands until combined. Place mixture into a large loaf pan, or two smaller pans. Spread the remaining barbecue sauce over top. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 hours for the larger pan, or 1 hour for the smaller pans, until done. 

Fillers

Meat Loaf, or anything made with ground meat, can benefit by adding different ingredients.  Some can be fillers that extend the amounts, some are just for flavor, and some things act as binders. Fillers, such as I used in this recipe, are things like the mushrooms and walnuts. Have you ever added mashed potatoes to hamburger meat? I learned this trick over 30 years ago. Cook and mash some potatoes, then add some to the ground meat. The mashed potatoes can be added up to not quite half the volume of the meat, at your discretion. This addition will loosen the texture of the meat, so eggs are nearly a must, but the flavor is excellent, and will have the family guessing at what made this meatloaf taste so good. This will certainly stretch the amount of meatloaf or hamburger patties you get from a pound of the meat.

Other Interesting Additions

Some other things you may not have thought of to flavor ground meat are ground nuts or seeds, such as walnuts, pecans, sesame or sunflower seeds. Depending on the overall flavor combination, using sesame seeds with some ground cashews and hoisin sauce would make for a nice oriental flavored meat. Using nuts and cheese together is also a great combo. Try chopping olives or capers finely and using them to add piquancy. Adding extra vegetables, such as grated carrot, finely diced celery or green pepper add nutrition as well as flavor. Applesauce is another really splendid addition to meatloaf, giving a little sweetness to the finished product. Bacon can be fried and chopped and added to the meat, or strips of bacon could be laid over the meat before baking.

Get inspired.  

My passion is to teach people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and help pass along my love and joy of food, both simple and exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, trying new things weekly. Join me at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook and Pinterest.