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I have fun tracking food fads and trends. About 10 years ago, comfort foods began to take pride of place on restaurant menus leading people to try their hand at these dishes at home.
Meatloaf and macaroni and cheese immediately spring to mind. All of a sudden, places were hawking upscale renditions of these childhood dishes often turning them into strange forms on the plate. Frankly, I don’t want lobster in my mac and cheese. I am a purist and enjoy it straight.
I adore a moist, juicy, flavorful meatloaf. I never order it in a restaurant. It is, more often than not, a dry, salty, overcooked mess that resembles dog food. I detest the dark brown, salty, viscous excuse for gravy. If I crave meatloaf, I make it at home.
Now that the weather is cool, meatloaf is one of the easiest dishes you can depend on in your repertoire. Adults love it. Children love it. I want to share a few of my secrets with you because I want you to sit down to a hot, juicy, packed-with-flavor meatloaf.
My Meatloaf mix consists of one pound of 85 percent lean ground beef, one pound of ground pork and a half pound of ground veal. Chopped spinach adds moisture and vitamins. Some recipes call for too much breadcrumbs. I use a little more than one-half cup of either breadcrumbs or matzo meal.
I like to round out My Meatloaf dinner with a green salad and some sort of starch. I ran out of potatoes last week so I substituted a flavorful rice enhanced by sautéed onions and chopped fresh herbs.
Autumn calls for Baked Apples that can be served cool, warm or at room temperature.
My Meatloaf
Ingredients:
1 pound of 85 percent lean ground beef
1 pound of ground pork
1/2 pound of ground veal
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 16-ounce bag of frozen chopped spinach, defrosted, all of the water squeezed out with your hands
1/2 cup of breadcrumbs or matzo meal
3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
2 eggs, well beaten
Sprinkling of nutmeg
Sprinkling of oregano
15-ounce can of tomato sauce
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Place all of the meats in a large bowl. Gently blend well. Add all of the remaining ingredients, except for the tomato sauce, a few at a time, gently blending after each addition.
Line a baking pan with aluminum foil. Place the meatloaf in the pan and form into a long loaf.
Bake the meatloaf for one hour. Allow to rest for about five minutes while you heat the tomato sauce.
Serves four.
Seasoned Rice
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons of olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2 fat cloves of garlic, sliced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 cups of water
1 cup of long grain rice
Fresh Italian parsley leaves, chopped<>
Directions:
Heat the oil in a 3-quart saucepan over medium-high. Add the onion and sauté for about three minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for about another minute. Add the water and bring to a boil. Add the rice, stir well to blend, cover the saucepan, lower to a bare simmer and cook for 25 minutes.
When ready to serve, fluff the rice using two forks. Top with the parsley.
Serves four.
Baked Apples
Ingredients:
4 large apples such as Rome or Honeycrisp
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans
4 tablespoons of unsalted butter
1/2 cup of pure maple syrup
Sprinkling of cinnamon
Directions:
Core the apples. Place some of the nuts in the core. Top each apple with a pat of the butter.
Place the apples in a glass baking dish. Pour the maple syrup over the apples. Dust each apple with a sprinkling of the cinnamon.
Place the apples in the microwave. Microwave on high for about five minutes. Pierce an apple with a knife to check for doneness. The apple should be soft but not mushy.
Serves four.
Contact the South Philly Review at editor@southphillyreview.com.
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