Pat’s “Never Enough” Meatloaf

My husband Pat loves Meat Loaf. It’s one of those meals that takes him to his happy place. He was pretty content with my hand-me-down family version but I always felt I could do better. The result of years of tweaking is the recipe that you have here. I knew it had gained Pat’s seal of approval when it vanished in record time and he always commented, “You didn’t make enough Meat Loaf!”

When Meat Loaf was on the menu we all anticipated some great Meat Loaf sandwiches for a couple of days after. Or at least, as long as the Meat Loaf lasted. There was never enough leftover for us to get tired of it. Lol.

If you’re looking to improve your Meat Loaf game here are some tips that I picked up along the way:

• Go for lean ground beef (no less than 80%) in this recipe because it includes bacon and sausage. Those two ingredients add plenty of fat (and great flavor). I don’t like to have a Meat Loaf swimming in fat. Juicy yes, lots of fat not so much.
• The vegetables are a very important part of this Meat Loaf. They add flavor, moistness and a more appealing texture. But a problem that a lot of Meat Loaves run into when incorporating chopped vegetables is that they interfere with the overall finished texture of the Meat Loaf when they aren’t chopped finely enough. The best way to solve this problem is your trusty food processor! Place all of the ingredients (except the garlic) to be chopped in the processor bowl and pulse until they are about the size of whole oats. Mince the garlic separately because it will be added later in the cooking process.
• It is easier to mix all ingredients thoroughly if you use a pretty large bowl. You want to toss the ingredients to combine them, without smooshing them by stirring or squeezing them with your hands. So use a large fork to first break apart the ground beef as finely as you can. Same goes for the sausage. Everything else will mix in better if you have the meat sufficiently broken apart. Remember, toss don’t stir.
• A meat thermometer comes in handy here, especially when baking one whole Meat Loaf. You can be sure the entire Meat Loaf is done and serve your family with confidence.

Pat’s “Never Enough” Meatloaf

Author: harriettscooking Cuisine: American Courses: Main Dishes

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Difficulty: Beginner Servings: 10

Ingredients

Servings

• 3 lb 80% Lean Ground Beef
• 4 oz Breakfast Sausage
• 1 cup dried Bread Crumbs (or 2 cups from fresh bread)
• 2 tsp Dried Thyme (2 tablespoon fresh)
• 2 tsp Rubbed Sage (2 Tablespoons fresh)
• 1 tsp Dried Rosemary (1 Tablespoon fresh)
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Freshly Ground Pepper
• ³⁄₄ lb Sliced Bacon (or 3/4 cup bacon bits)
• 1 Large Leek (White part only, rinsed well and chopped)
• 1 Red Bell Pepper (Medium, Finely Chopped)
• 1 Onion (Medium, finely chopped)
• 6 clove Garlic (Minced)
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce (or Fish Sauce)
• 2 tbsp Tomato Paste
• 1 tbsp Hot Sauce (Optional)
• ¹⁄₂ cup Dijon Mustard
• 2 Eggs (Large)

Glaze

• ¹⁄₂ cup Tomato Catsup
• ¹⁄₄ cup Light Brown Sugar (Firmly Packed)
• 1 tbsp Dijon Mustard
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 °F

   In a large (18") skillet, cook bacon over medium-low heat until browned and crispy. With slotted spoon, remove bacon and drain on paper towels. Pour off all but 2 Tablespoons of bacon fat. Break up bacon into small bits and set aside.

2. In the bacon fat cook leeks, red bell pepper and onions over medium heat until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes, stirring constantly.

3. Add garlic to skillet and cook for an additional minute. Stir in Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, hot sauce and Dijon mustard. Set aside to cool.

4.  Spray 15" X 10" baking pan or 2 1/2 quart casserole with cooking spray. Using parchment paper line the dish, leaving 1 - 2" overlap on two sides.

5. In a large bowl toss ground beef, sausage, bread crumbs and spices. With a large fork stir in egg. Mix well.

6. Shape mixture into one large loaf, or two smaller loaves. (They freeze well!) Place in baking dish.

7. In a small mixing bowl combine the catsup, brown sugar, Dijon mustard and Worcestershire sauce to make the Glaze. Set Glaze aside.

8. Bake Meat Loaf uncovered for 1  hour. Remove from oven and cover with Glaze. 

   Return Meat Loaf to oven for an additional 1/2 hour or until center of Meat Loaf registers 175 ° F.

    

    

9. Let stand for 10 minutes.

   Using the sling that you made with parchment paper, lift the Meat Loaf out of the baking dish and onto a cutting board for easier slicing.