"Gourmet Goddess" Recipes

So, for those of you who have read "Survival Tactics" you know that our main character, Daphne, loves to cook. "On her behalf", I will be featuring weekly treats, nibbles and yummies for your eating pleasure! I think we should start with her famous meatloaf(recipe courtesy of simplyrecipes.com) .  Here's the recipe! Try it and let me know how you make out! I wanna see pictures too! Don't be shy!

Classic Meatloaf

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Traditional meatloaf recipe with the delicious twist of using Italian pork sausage in addition to ground beef. Also includes onion, celery, garlic, egg, parsley, and bread crumbs.

Italian sausage makes a difference in this recipe! We use a combination of spicy and sweet, but it you only have one, choose sweet Italian sausage. If you don't have access to spicy ground pork or Italian sausage, mix in a half teaspoon each of fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, and hot sauce into regular ground pork.

• Prep time: 20 minutes
• Cook time: 1 hour, 10 minutes
• Yield: Serves 4 to 6, with plenty for leftovers for meatloaf sandwiches.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 cup of finely chopped onion
• 1 celery rib, finely chopped
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup of finely chopped green onion, including the green onion greens
• 3 cloves garlic, minced (about 1 Tbsp)
• 2 teaspoon salt (use 1 1/2 teaspoons if using Italian sausage)
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2/3 cup ketchup, divided 1/3 and 1/3
• 1 1/2 pounds of ground beef (chuck)
• 3/4 pound of spicy ground pork sausage or Italian sausage (a mix of sweet and hot if you are using links)
• 1 cup fresh bread crumbs (take a couple slices of fresh bread and pulse in a blender until you have crumbs)
• 2 large eggs, beaten slightly
• 1/3 cup minced fresh parsley leaves

METHOD

1 Preheat oven to 350° F, with a rack in the middle of the oven.

2 Melt the butter in a large, thick-bottomed skillet, on medium heat. When the butter starts to foam, add the finely chopped onions, celery, carrot, green onions and garlic to the pan and cook for  5 minutes. Cover the pan and cook for another 5 minutes, until the carrots are tender, stirring every so often. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add the Worcestershire sauce and one-third cup of ketchup. Cook for another minute and remove from heat to cool.

3 Once the vegetables have cooled to the touch, place them in a large bowl with the ground beef, Italian sausage, eggs, breadcrumbs and parsley. Use your (very clean) hands to mix them together until everything is evenly distributed.

4 Place the meatloaf mixture into a loaf pan (either 4x8 or 5x9) and press to make compact in the pan. Or you can form a free-standing loaf onto a rimmed baking pan. Cover the meatloaf mixture with the rest of the ketchup.

5 Bake for 1 hour at 350°F, or until a meat thermometer inserted into the center of the meatloaf reads 155°F. Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes. Then use a metal spatula to gently lift the meatloaf out of the loaf pan to a serving plate.

Make thick slices to serve. The meatloaf makes great leftovers, just chill and reheat. Slices are good in sandwiches as well.

Read more: http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/classic_meatloaf/#ixzz3cEFOcPe9