Hello Coasties,
Yeah yeah, I know, another meat loaf recipe. Meat loaf is a simple combination of starch and meat and has been embraced by people the world over; no more enthusiastically perhaps than by the Americans. Because we are a nation of immigrants; we’re blessed to be able to experience a jumble of cuisines from all over the world and make them our own. There has been mention of meat loaves in American cook books since the 1800s. In colonial times, German immigrants made a mix of ground pork and breadcrumbs and egg called “scrapple”; and this very well could have been the birth of what we now call “meatloaf”(Danke Deutsche). In any event, wherever it started, it is wonderful dish with mashed potatoes and green beans. I hope you enjoy this variation on the traditional recipe. Enjoy
American Meat Loaf
Ingredients:
6 ounces garlic-flavored croutons
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 onion, roughly chopped
1 carrot, peeled and broken into pieces
3 whole garlic cloves
1 red bell pepper
18 ounces ground chuck
18 ounces ground sirloin
1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 egg
For Glaze:
1/2 cup catsup
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Dash of Worcestershire sauce
Dash Tabasco or other hot sauce
1 tablespoon honey
Directions:
Heat oven to 325 degrees F
In a food processor bowl, combine croutons black pepper, cayenne pepper, chili powder and thyme. Pulse until the mixture is of a fine texture. Place this mixture into a large bowl. Combine onion, carrot, garlic and red pepper (bell pepper) into the food processor bowl. Pulse until mixture is finely chopped, but not pureed. Combine the vegetable mixture, ground sirloin and ground chuck with the bread crumb mixture. Season the meat mixture with kosher salt. Add the egg and combine with the hands thoroughly, but try to avoid squeezing the meat.
Pack this mixture into a 10-inch loaf pan to mold into the shape of a loaf (I just shape it by hand into a loaf shape and the skip pan). Place onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet in the center of the sheet by either turning it out of the loaf pan or just placing your hand-shaped loaf in the center of the pan. Insert a temperature probe into the center at a 45 degree angle. Make sure the probe doesn’t touch the bottom of the pan. Set probe for 155 degrees. Bake in oven until internal temperature reaches 155 degrees.
Combine the catsup, cumin, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco and honey in a small bowl; stir to combine. Spoon glaze onto top of the meatloaf after it has been in the oven cooking for about 10 minutes.
Fritz Karlsvalt