Meatloaf from Food Network’s “Best Thing I Ever Ate”

The reason I was making meatloaf is Jamie (who works with Vic) was coming over for dinner & he loves meatloaf.  I had just watched an episode of “Best Thing…” and  was intrigued with the meatloaf from the 1770 House Restaurant in East Hampton that Ina Garten raved about.  I mean, she thought this was the best thing since sliced bread.  So, even though it was different from other recipes for meatloaf—I tracked down the recipe (which is printed on the 1770 House‘s Facebook page) and gave it a whirl—or a bake.

Meat Loaf Recipe (serves 6 to 8 people)

1 lb ground beef (preferably naturally raised)
1 lb ground veal (preferably naturally raised)
1 lb ground pork (preferably naturally raised Berkshire)
2 stalks of celery, finely diced
1 large Spanish onion, finely diced
1 T. chopped, fresh Italian parsley
1 T. chopped, fresh thyme leaves
1 T. chopped, fresh chives
3 large eggs (preferably organic)
1 1/3 c. Panko bread crumbs, finely ground in a food processor
2/3 c. whole milk (preferably hormone and antibiotic free)
1 T. kosher salt
1 T. freshly ground black pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 350F
1. Place every item except the onion and celery in a large mixing bowl.
2. Heat a medium sauté pan over medium-high heat and film it with extra virgin olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the celery and onion to the pan and cook, stirring, until softened. Remove the celery and onion from the pan and let cool. When the mixture is cool, add it to the mixing bowl with the other ingredients.
3. By hand, mix the ingredients until well combined and everything is evenly distributed.
4. Place a piece of parchment paper on a baking pan (it should have sides at least 1.5 inches high to prevent grease runoff from the pan). Free form the meat loaf on the pan into a rectangular cylinder. Pat it and punch it down and reform into a cylinder—this will get rid of air pockets.
5. Place the pan in the pre-heated 350F degree oven and bake 40 to 50 minutes or until a probe thermometer indicates an internal temperature of 155-160 degrees.
6. Remove from the oven and let the loaf rest for 10 minutes. Slice into portions of your preference and serve with potato puree and sautéed spinach.

Sauce
2 c. dark chicken jus or beef broth

8 to 10 cloves of roasted garlic

3 T. butter at room temperature

Combine all of the ingredients and cook over medium high heat until lightly thickened. Spoon the sauce over the meat loaf.

Chef Kevin Penner
East Hampton, NY

To round out dinner:  Macaroni & Cheese

Oven Roasted Asparagus

Salad with sauteed pears, walnuts & Parmesan

and:     Apricot Pie with vanilla ice cream

When Jamie arrived I offered him an Old Fashioned made with cherry-infused Maker’s Mark that had been waiting for this moment in the outside refrigerator.

Cherry Old Fashioned

I muddled a couple of slices of orange with 2 cubes of brown sugar, then added 2 oz of the cherry-infused bourbon and filled a glass with ice and poured in the Old Fashioned.  Delicious.  Heavy with a fresh cherry flavor and sharp with orange.  This was one great Old Fashioned.

The meat loaf was good….but, having been raised on the typical catsup anointed kind…..this didn’t taste much like meat loaf is supposed to taste.   Maybe if I re-named it Mixed Meat Terrine??   Regardless, Jamie was enthusiastic about it and ended up taking the rest of it home.

Read Also:

1. Meatloaf with Bacon

Tagged as: 1770 House Restaurant, Cherry Old Fashioned, Food Network, Ina Garten, Meatloaf