Gourmet Meat Loaf

It's the beginning of Easter weekend, the family and extra's are slowly coming home, food is on my mine (which is nothing new) and the extra cooks I am going to have in my kitchen.

I know I should be giving you a chocolate recipe, but for most of you, feeding other's a good healthy filling meal this weekend, will be important.

Tonight my daughter Ashley and her friend made this Gourmet Meat loaf, actually, they made one each. They had a lot of fun adding in there own fillings. It was a real hit at the dinner table tonight, served with mashed potatoes and vegetables.

Gourmet  Meat Loaf Recipe

1 kg lean beef mince

5 cloves garlic - minced

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley - or 2 tbsp dried parsley

3/4 cup dried breadcrumbs

2 eggs - whisked

Himalayan salt and pepper

 

Filling

You choose what filling you want.

But you need to use - grated cheese which holds it all together, Himalayan salt and pepper and some tomato relish or puree.

Options for filling -

 fresh spinach or chard leaves - finely sliced grated cheese

sundried tomatoes - finely sliced

spring onions or onion - finely chopped

olives, gherkins or sundried capsicum

mushrooms - finely sliced

Fresh or dried herbs

Topping

500 gr tomato / pasta  sauce - homemade or bought

Method

Oven 180 c - baking tin with sides about 13 inch by 8 inch with high sides.  I use a tin foil dish.

1 -Mix in a large bowl the beef mince, garlic, parsley, eggs, breadcrumbs and salt/pepper.

2 - Place a large piece of tin foil and then greaseproof paper on top, on the bench.

3 - Spread the mince mixture onto the paper, into a rectangle shape - 1.5 cm thick. You want the

width to fit your baking tin.

4 - Leaving a 2 cm gap around the whole rectangle, spread the cheese, and the rest of your choose of filling over the meat. 

5 - Taking the long edge of the paper, tightly roll the meatloaf away from you. 

      Tucking the filling as you go.

     Pull back the paper and foil as you go.

     Seal the ends of the mince so the filling doesn’t leak out.

6 -  Pick up the loaf and paper/tin foil and place in your dish. Pour over your tomato sauce.

7 - Bake covered for 1 hour.

Once you have mixed all your mince ingredients together, spread out on the grease proof paper.

Lay your filling on top, and start rolling, tucking the filling as you go.

Fold in the ends, neatly.

Lay in the oven dish and pour over the tomato sauce.

Bake for one hour. Pour the liquid out of the dish, scoop off the fat.

Pour the sauce back over the loaf.

Slice and enjoy.

xx