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COOKBOOKS WITH PANACHE
Stonewall Kitchen Favorites
By Jonathan King and Jim Stott
Jonathan King and Jim Stott, founders
of the specialty food purveyor Stonewall Kitchen reinvigorate
125 classic American dishes in their new book Stonewall
Kitchen Favorites (Clarkson Potter, 2006, $32.50).
Three Moms' Meat Loaf
Serves 6 to 8 |
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INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound ground beef chuck (see Note)
12 ounces ground pork (see Note)
12 ounces ground veal (see Note)
2 large eggs
1 cup plain bread crumbs
1 tablespoon tomato paste
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 teaspoons salt
Freshly ground black pepper
One 16-ounce can crushed tomatoes
4 ounces thick-sliced bacon (about 4 slices)
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Three Moms' Meat Loaf. |
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Each one of us has distinct childhood memories involving meatloaf. We all grew up eating it in one form or another, and each of us had a kind of a love-hate relationship with the dish. But we decided it was time to take a new look at this American classic. This recipe, a sophisticated, much-improved version of what we remember from days past, combines elements from each of our mother's best meat loaves.
Three Moms' Meat Loaf combines ground beef, pork, and veal, fresh rosemary, thyme, and parsley and is baked free-form on a baking sheet. The meat loaf stays moist and flavorful thanks to a few strips of bacon placed on top and a simple tomato sauce that forms in the pan. If you are lucky enough to have any leftovers, the meat loaf makes a fabulous sandwich the next day.
Place a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat oven to 375°F.
Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-low heat. When hot, add
the onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is
soft, about 10 minutes. In a large bowl, combine the onion mixture, beef,
pork, veal, eggs, bread crumbs, tomato paste, parsley, thyme, rosemary, salt,
and a generous grinding of pepper, mixing well with your hands or a wooden
spoon. Turn the meat out onto a rimmed baking sheet, a roasting pan with
high edges, or a large 11 x 15-inch or a 9 x 13-inch glass dish and
form the meat mixture into a loaf approximately 5 x 8 inches and 3 to 4 inches
tall. Mix the tomatoes with 1 1⁄2 cups water in a small bowl and pour
the sauce over the top of the meat loaf, allowing some of it to fall into
the pan. Drape the bacon strips over the meat loaf widthwise. Bake for 30
minutes, basting with the pan juices several times. Increase the oven temperature
to 400°F, and bake an additional 30 to 40 minutes, basting every 10 minutes
or so, for a total cooking time of 60 to 70 minutes. The bacon should be
cooked through and a thermometer inserted into the center of the meat loaf
should measure 165°F. Remove from the oven and let the meat loaf rest
for 10 minutes, then cut into slices and serve with the bacon and the tomato
juices from the bottom of the pan.
Note: If you can't find all three meats (often found premixed with the
label “meat loaf mix” in supermarkets), try a mixture of whatever
ground red meats you can find, totaling 2 1⁄2 pounds. For the best flavor,
make sure the meat has at least 10 percent fat. Each meat generally lists the
amount of fat on the label.
Favorite variations
• Add 3⁄4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese for
a richer meat loaf.
• Finely chop 1 small red or green bell pepper and add
it to the pan with the onions and garlic.
• Substitute fresh basil for the parsley.
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| Photo credit: Jim Stott.
From the book: Stonewall Kitchen Favorites by Jonathan King, Jim Stott and Kathy
Gunst. Copyright © 2006 by Jonathan King, Jim Stott and Kathy
Gunst. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, a division of
Random House, Inc. |
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