Eggcellent Meatloaf

Oh meatloaf, you are so misunderstood.  Long gone are the days of you being overcooked, boring and masked in so much ketchup you aren't even recognizable.  Meatloaf is so easy to make and provides a base for so much variety and creativity.  This recipe is somewhat original but the idea of hard boiled egg stuffed meatloaf is not.  Every recipe I saw similar to this- the meatloaf was wrapped in bacon as well.  That sounds delicious but I felt it was a bit much so I just threw some bacon bits in the mix instead.

I used half pork and half beef, but you can certainly use the meatloaf mix (beef, pork, veal) or use turkey or any combo of meats you like.  Just make sure you at least 2 lbs of meat.  Another note being that this takes about an hour to cook, so if you have hungry tummies try a quicker recipe.

Another easy classic that people can be wary about- hard boiled eggs.  If you follow this recipe you will have perfect eggs every time- with no gross grey yokes.

Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs: in a small pot cover the eggs completely in cold water.  Set on the stove and bring to a boil.  Once it comes to a boil shut off the heat, cover and let sit for ten minutes.  After ten minutes you can gently crack and peel.  If you have a hard time removing the shells- try cracking them, then soaking in cold water for 5 minutes and the water will get in between the shell and egg and make it easier for shell removal without tearing the actual egg.

(Again I must apologize for the horrible pictures- Cyber Monday is just around the corner and that means new camera!)

Ingredients

• 1 lb of ground beef (80%)
• 1 lb of ground pork
• 1/3 cup of blue cheese dressing (or ranch would be good too)
• 4 hard boiled eggs (see directions above)
• 1/2 cup of bread crumbs
• couple splashes of milk (about 1/4 cup)
• handful of bacon bits (homemade or from the jar)
• 3 scallions (or any small onion), sliced thin
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 jalapeno, minced
• salt & pepper
• 2 tablespoons of adobo seasoning
• oil

Directions

1. Combine everything in bowl, except for the hard boiled eggs.  Mix just until everything comes together.
2. Split the meat into two sections.  Form the bottom layer on a greased baking sheet (with sides because there will be a lot of grease and oil after it's done).  Lay the eggs gently down the middle of the meat.  Then gently form the rest of the meat around the eggs and form to make it look like a meatloaf. 
3. Cover the whole thing in a little oil and bake at 375 degrees for about an hour.  (At the very end I put the oven to 400 to speed up the process a bit-we were hungry!) Cook until the internal temp is at 155 degrees. 
4. Slice and serve.

Braised Pork w Gemolata

Ah, now this is a meal Nonna would be proud of.  So simple, yet so delicious and heartfelt.  The only hard part about this dish is waiting for it to be done.  It will take about 2 to 3 hours of cooking time.  The best part about this dish (besides the taste of course) is that you can use this method on any type of meat.  I adapted this version from Chef Anne Burrell’s Braised Lamb Shanks.  Instead of lamb shanks I used the skinny end of the huge pork loin I buy and section myself (the two “pork tenderloin” pieces as I described them in an early post).  Originally I was going to serve this dish with polenta (I think Anne paired the lamb with polenta too) but when it was cooking the smell of the house just screamed “Italian Sunday” so I paired it with some medium shells.  I plan on using this recipe next time I have guests over.

Ingredients

·         About 2 pounds of pork loin

·         1 big onion

·         3 carrots

·         3 celery ribs

·         4 garlic cloves

·         2 (6oz) cans of tomato paste

·         2 cups of chicken stock

·         2 tsp each of dry rosemary, thyme, red pepper flakes and salt

·         3 to 4 cups of water

·         3-4 bay leaves

·         Gremolata (optional and recipe follows)

Directions

1.       Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F

2.       Using a pan that will be able to go into the oven later (I used a high sided skillet, but a dutch oven will work great too), coat the bottom of the pan with oil and put over high heat.

3.       Season the meat with salt and pepper generously and brown on all sides.  Be careful the oil is very hot and might spit at you.

4.       As that browns, cut all your veggies into big chunks and process in a food processor or blender until it is like a veggie paste. 

5.       When the meat is done browning, remove from the pan and set aside for now.  Add the veggie paste and season with salt and pepper.

6.       You are going to cook the veggies until it forms a brown crust on the bottom of the pan.  This will take about 20 mins.  When it’s ready it should look like this:

7.       Add the tomato paste and cook for 5 minutes.

8.       Then add the stock (or you can use red or white wine too here) and spices

9.       Cook this until reduced by about half.

10.   Add the meat back into the pan.  Add the bay leaves as well.  Add the water until the meat is fully submerged (or almost fully submerged, mine stuck out a little). Cover the pan with foil.

11.   Cooking time will vary depending on your meat choice, but this is what I did:

a.       First 45 mins, then flip

b.      Second 45 mins, flip again and take off foil

c.       30 more minutes and then done

Boil pasta of your choice and serve topped with pork and gremolata.

 Some good tips from Anne Burrell’s recipe,were that if the water reduces too much, just add more.  Also, if you have a fatty meat you might have to skim the fat as you go.  I chose a lean meat so there was no fat to skim.

 Gremolata

So what is gremolata anyway?  It is a traditional topper (condiment) for long cooked meals to help brighten up the dishes flavors.  It’s almost like a pop of fresh flavor to accompany the long slow savory tastes of the main dish.  Traditional gremolata consists of parsley, lemon zest and garlic.  That’s it!

 I used the zest of one lemon, 2 garlic cloves, and handful of parsley.  Chop them all up together and mill together so it becomes a homogenous mixture.

Roasted Pork Loin & Potatoes

This is definitely a "Sunday Dinner".  A classic meat and potato dinner that looks fancy.  Easy, but not super quick, yet still possible on a weeknight if you have the time. Overall it will probably take about an hour and a half with prep, cook and rest time.  Well worth it though.  When meat cooks a long time the heat breaks down and melts the fat so it isn't chewy.  Even my boyfriend Brendan who skeeves fatty pieces told me the crispy skin was delicious. 

I bought a full sized pork loin for $1.99/lb and it came in a cryovac of about 10 pounds.  I always cut this piece of meat into three different parts.  The fat end becomes the roast, the middle I cut into pork chops and the skinnier end piece becomes "pork tenderloins" (not because they are, just because I cut it into smaller pieces that resemble the tenderloin shape).  I bag them separate and freeze them. 

I will leave a good layer of fat on the roast piece and trim the rest of the loin accordingly.  Like I mentioned before, the long cook time and heat will melt the fat and help keep the meat juicy and flavorful over this long high cook time.  In the following pictures you can see a pretty presentation on the fat side because I "score" the fat.  Just make a deep cut in the fat layer in any design you like, I go for traditional crosshatch.

Ingredients

• About a 3lb pork loin roast
• 1 softball size onion, sliced
• 2 peppers of your choice, sliced
• 1 jalapeno, minced
• 3 cloves of garlic, diced
• 1 tablespoon each of: salt, fresh pepper, thyme, rosemary & adobe seasoning
• Oil of your choice

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
2. Slice and prep all your veggies. 
3. Take the pork loin and dry off with paper towels.  Slice the layer of fat with the design of your choice.  Rub the meat with all the spices.
4. I used a cast iron skillet, but use any skillet that will be able to go from the stove top to the oven.  Heat the oil in the pan on high heat (you don't have to use too much oil if you have a good layer of fat on the pork, just enough to coat the bottom of the skillet).  It will be hot enough when you see the oil rippling.
5. Sear the fat side first.  Sear each additional side until it's brown, about 2-3 minutes on each side.  You aren't trying to cook the meat, just brown it.
6. When all sides are brown (don't forget the ends, use tongs to help hold it up if needed), take the meat out of the pan, and drain off any excess oil, but leave about a 2 tablespoons in the pan.
7. Reduce the heat a bit (to about medium) and add all your veggies and garlic. Season with salt and pepper as well.
8. Cook for about 4 mins, just until soft.
9. Place the pork on top of the bed of veggies and pop into the oven.

Potatoes

• about 2lbs of potatoes, diced into similar sizes (Any kind of potato will do)
• 1 tablespoon of: salt, pepper, rosemary and adobo
• oil of your choice to coat

1. Combine all ingredients on a sheet pan and put in the oven with the pork.

Oven times will vary depending on the size and shape of the pork loin and the size of the potatoes.  When the potatoes are golden and brown they are done.  About 30-40 mins.  I had to remove the potatoes before the pork was done, but when the pork was resting I put them back in the oven for about 5 minutes to reheat.

I always have to use a meat thermometer to know when my meat is done.  Call it unprofessional, but I never overcook/undercook anything because of it.  I took out the meat when it reached about 155 degrees (about 30-45 mins) and let it rest for about 5 minutes.  Cover with tinfoil when resting (you do this before slicing so the juices have time to redistribute and not make a huge mess on your cutting board).


Slice and serve topped with the onions and peppers along side the potatoes.