Meat Dishes

All-American Classic Meat Loaf

2 eggs, lightly beaten

2/3 C. beef broth or dry red wine

1 T. Worcestershire sauce

3 slices sourdough bread, cubed (about 2 cups)

¼ C. gated Parmesan or Romano cheese

2 T. yellow mustard

4 cloves garlic, minced

¼ tsp. crushed red pepper

1 lb. ground beef sirloin

1 lb. ground beef chuck

1 med. Green sweet pepper, chopped

½ a med. Onion, chopped

½ C. ketchup

2 T. packed brown sugar

2 tsp. cider vinegar

Chopped fresh parsley, sliced green onions, and black pepper (optional).

• Preheat oven to 350º. In large bowl combine eggs, broth and Worcestershire sauce; stir in bread cubes. Let stand 15 minutes. With fork, mash bread cubes into small pieces. Stir in Parmesan cheese, mustard, garlic, 1 tsp. salt, ½ tsp. black pepper and crushed red pepper. Add meat, sweet pepper and onion. Using hands mix ingredients together well (do not over mix). Lightly pat meat mixture into 9x5x3” loaf pan. *With fingers lightly pull loaf away from sides of pan. (see Shape and Bake, below.)
• Bake, uncovered, for 1 ¼ hours. For topping, in small bowl stir together ketchup, brown sugar and vinegar. Spoon on loaf. Bake 15 minutes more or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into center of loaf reads 160º.
• Let stand 10 minutes. To remove, use two large spatulas inserted along short edges to lift loaf from the pan to a platter. Sprinkle with parsley, green onions and black pepper. Makes 8 to 10 servings.
• *Or shape the meat mixture in a 9” loaf in a baking dish. Bake as directed.

Shape and Bake: When shaping meat loaf, as in above recipe, in a 9x5x3” pan, use a light touch. Packing it tightly will make the loaf dense and tough. For even browning and to prevent drippings from pooling on the loaf, use your fingers to round the top while pushing the sides away from the edges of the pan.