I COLLECT MEATLOAF RECIPES. I know, I know: salt shakers, snow globes, even hand-painted fish plates are a more normal pursuit, but I happen to adore meatloaf recipes for reasons that perhaps only a good therapist might like to hear. But I don’t need one (quiet now, Margaret), and can save myself the $100, and tell you it’s probably nothing more/less complicated that our mother didn’t ever–not once–make meatloaf.
Our mother was a memorable cook, but, as I’ve written before, it had nothing to do with her recipes, and what few things she cooked, she did not write down, which (again, no therapist needed), may be why I so love my recipe-box collection.
My own version of a recipe file is a huge spattered looseleaf binder, whose plastic envelope pages are bulging got the point of explosion, particularly that section dedicated to meatloaf. I treasure my meatloafs, and in this economy it’s one place where I’m ready to add on, build up and generally expand. So, let’s swap, shall we?
Just to prove that I’m a serious collector–and sharer–I’ll open with an ace: celebrity meat loaf.
Bill Blass’s Meatloaf
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 Tbsp butter
- 2 lbs ground beef sirloin
- ½ lb veal
- ½ lb pork
- ½ cup chopped parsley
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- ½ cup soft bread crumbs
- ¼ tsp thyme
- ¼ tsp marjoram
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 ½ cups Heinz chili sauce
- 3 slices bacon
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Oil an 8-by-4-inch loaf pan. In a heavy skillet sauté celery and onion in butter until soft. Scrape into large mixing bowl. And let cool.
2. Add meats, parsley, sour cream, bread crumbs, thyme, marjoram and slat and pepper. Whisk egg with Worcestershire sauce and add to mix. Using your hands, combine, and shape into loaf size.
3. Place in pan. Top with chili and bacon slices. Bake until firm and nicely browned, about 1 hour.
Serves 6-8.
Now, here’s the rub. I’ve never made that one. I don’t like veal, and I never use a loaf pan, but that’s another story. Much like the prized painted fish plate in my collection (ah, yes, I admit it; I have collections other than meatloaf recipes), I don’t use this. But I love having it in my recipe file, both in the meatloaf category, as well in that of comfort foods. Go figure. For those meatloafs I do I cook, come back and check in. But don’t come empty-handed, sister: Bring me a meatloaf recipe.
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Oddly enough, meatloaf is something I’ve never needed a recipe for. I usually make it with ground beef alone, although I have added ground pork on occasion. Mix meat with minced onion/garlic/celery, an egg (or two), dried bread crumbs, grated parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, dried parsley and copious amounts of ketchup. The exact amount of each ingredient is not critical. If the mixture is crumbly, add more liquid. If the mixture is runny, add more dry stuff. It should be moist and just hold a shape. Then add to greased loaf pan and bake in a 350-375 oven for half an hour or so (depending on amount, proportions of loaf pan, how done you like your beef, etc). Slice and serve, with gravy if possible. For an extra special treat, bake the meatloaf with a layer of mashed potatoes spread on top. The following day, make meatloaf sandwiches for lunch. This is the food of the gods.
Hi, Sandy: I love that meatloaf is something for which you’ve never needed a recipe. That’s delightful. And while I agree that it’s the food of the gods, I do wonder how it came to be so? The very word “meatloaf” makes my husband smile with the kind of serenity he holds for no other earthly experience. Say “meatloaf, mashed potatoes and gravy,” and he’s eating out of my hand.
Ah, but what is “un terrine de pate” if not the French version of comfort food. C’est bien.
In a restaurant tonight, saw an entree: “Stuffed Meatloaf.” As if the real stuff isn’t good enough, this was stuffed with Italian sausage & mashed potatoes. Goose bump time.
Hey, Sandy. This made me laugh out loud. Meatloaf, by name and definition, seems stuffed stuff. Gilding the lily, as it were, would be to stuff it, though now that you mention it, I recently had dinner at a friends’ whose meatloaf, when sliced, revealed a hard boiled egg (no shell) in the center. Made a bulls-eye on the plate. Very amusing. Live and let meatloaf, I guess, yes?