Happy National Meatloaf Appreciation Day!

g greater…something more alive. I posit that meatloaf is the Frankenstein’s Monster of foodstuffs. Just in time for Halloween.

The folks at Serious Eats have declared October 18th to be National Meatloaf Appreciation Day. Well, it’s about time! Think about it, if there’s a whole day devoted to talking like a Pirate, then surely meatloaf deserves its own day, too. Hell, I think we should go for a whole week! That’s how much I love the stuff.

So here it is, my MegaLoaf. This recipe has evolved over the years, but it is essentially a tweaking of The Dream Loaf recipe from Michael McLaughlin’s 52 Meat Loaves. There are some terrific loaves in there, some traditional like the Dream Loaf, and some less so like the Shrimp & Chicken Loaf with Pink Tomato Cream. There are some fabulous side dish recipes, too. The book is sadly out of print, but there are still copies floating around on ebay and biblio.com. It’s a must-have for all meatloaf lovers and cookbook freaks. And without further ado, I give you The MegaLoaf.

The MegaLoaf

I like to make one regular-sized loaf for immediate eating, and three mini-loaves for freezing to be eaten later. For a single loaf, cut this recipe in half.

2 lb ground beef 1  lb ground pork 1 lb ground veal. I used to make this loaf all the time with a 50/50 mix of either pork and turkey or pork and beef because even though I’m a carnivore, the idea of veal completely freaks me out and I never, ever eat it. Fully aware of my hypocrisy, now I just go for the pre-packaged beef/pork/veal meatloaf mix that is in my grocery meat department. I don’t know the proportions, but I suspect it’s an equal 33/33/33 mix. Whatever it is, it works and it’s already sized for your loaf pan. I highly recommend it. 1 stick of butter. Yes, you can (and probably should) get away with half that amount. But why would you? 3 cups of chopped onions. Make ‘em small! 1 large red, yellow or orange bell pepper chopped up small, too. 3 scallions chopped with the green bits, too. 2 tbsp chopped fresh thyme 4 tbsp minced garlic 4 large eggs, beaten 1/2 can beef consomme (you can substitute beef broth here, but consomme is richer) 1 tbsp Nance’s Sharp and Creamy Mustard (or Durkee’s Famous or some other mild yet zingy mustard) 2 tbsp hot pepper sauce (I prefer Trappey’s) 2 tbsp soy sauce 2 tbsp Worchestershire sauce 1 cup shredded mild cheddar or Colby cheese 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese + a slice or two of cheese chopped into small chunks instead of shredded. I like to do this because they don’t entirely dissolve. There are some melted cheesey bits in the loaf that you can see. 1 3/4 cups of crushed crackers (saltines work best but Sociables work fine, too) Ketchup 8 slices of bacon, cut in half shortways

* In a large pan, melt the butter on medium heat. Once foamy, add the onions, scallions, pepper and garlic. Cook about 10 minutes, stirring often until they are soft and slightly browned. Remove from heat

* Set oven to 350F with one rack in the middle and one directly below it.

* In a bowl, mix the eggs, consomme, Nance’s, Trappey’s, Worchestershire and soy sauces together until well blended. Set aside.

*In a really big bowl, combine the meat, the onion/pepper/butter mixture, the cheeses and the cracker crumbs. Using your CLEAN hands, mix thoroughly, but lightly. An over-mixed meatloaf is a tough meatloaf. Transfer the meatmix to your loaf pans, making certain that they are solid forms but don’t pack then down. You can mound them slightly in the centers if there seems to be a lot of meatmix.

* Spread ketchup evenly over the loaves and lay the bacon slices across the tops. You can overlap the bacon or you can tuck the ends into the sides a little. Expect them to curl up a lot.

* Place loaves on the center rack. I place a pyrex baking dish 1/2 filled with water on the rack underneath. Makes a nice steamy moist-making environment for loaves. Bake until a meat thermometer reads 160F. For the mini-loaves this is around 45″-1 hour. For the regular loaf it’s about 1 hr. Drain off the excess fat, if that’s your thing (it ain’t mine) and let the loaves stand for 10 minutes before slicing. let loaves cool completely before freezing. This stuff is amazing for freezing.

“Meat Coma” by Rahne Alexander courtesy of the Podsafe Music Network.

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