Veggie-Packed Meatloaf with a Dollop of Flavor

rebeca  Wednesday, December 16, 2009

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This particular recipe for Market Street Meat Loaf scored high points in our house…even with the uber picky hubby. Sheila Lukins’s latest cookbook, “TEN: All the Foods We Love, Ten Recipes for Each.” I especially like it because it packs a huge punch of flavor… it’s a unique twist on an old favorite. Plus, it’s loaded with veggies. I don’t know about you, but we always struggle to get all our vegetable servings in. When you sneak it into the meat dish, you can’t miss. Lukins says it’s the carrots, celery and bell peppers that get the flavor going; but I think it’s the spices that take it over the edge. It gives a nice fresh flavor that you don’t expect with meat loaf.

It also makes a huge batch, making it the ideal freezer meal. You can bake half now and put the rest in the freezer for later. I’ve made it twice so far. I cut the onion amount in half both times, but other than the first time around I followed the recipe exactly as it was written. The second time I used 3 pounds of lean ground beef instead of adding pork. I also left out the cumin and nutmeg because hubby was in the mood for something a little closer to “mom’s cooking”. Both batches were equally delicious!

3 tablespoons unsalted butter
¾ cup finely chopped onion
¾ cup finely chopped scallions (white bulbs and 3 inches green)
½ cup finely chopped carrots
¼ cup finely chopped celery
¼ cup finely chopped red bell pepper
¼ cup finely chopped green bell pepper
2 teaspoons minced garlic
3 large eggs, well beaten
½ cup ketchup
½ cup half-and-half
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 pounds lean ground beef
12 ounces ground sweet Italian sausage
¾ cup fine fresh toasted bread crumbs (I cheated and used the generic grocery brand)

1. Melt the butter in a heavy skillet over medium-low heat, and add the onions, scallions, carrots, celery, bell peppers, and garlic. Cook, stirring often, until the moisture has evaporated. (about 10 minutes). Set the mixture aside to cool; then refrigerate it, covered, until chilled (1-2 hours).

2. Pre-heat oven to 350

3. Beat the eggs, ketchup, half-and-half, cumin, nutmeg, cayenne, and salt and pepper together in a mixing bowl. Add the ground beef, sausage and bread crumbs. Then add the chilled vegetables and knead with your hands until well mixed.

4. Form the mixture into a loaf shape, approximately 12 inches long, 5 inches wide and 2 ½ inches high, on a rimmed baking sheet. (I use a bread pan as my mold). Bake the loaf until it is cooked through—about 1 hour. Let the meat loaf rest for 20 minutes before slicing.