My Favorite Meatloaf Recipe

Sometimes a recipe comes along that is so wonderful that it spoils you from making any other way, no matter how badly you want to. I have a recipe that falls deeply into this category: meatloaf. Sounds crazy, I know, but since I adapted this recipe from the The Williams-Sonoma Cookbook using grass fed beef, pastured veal and grass fed lamb I have been forever spoiled.

It almost seems that the stars must align just right for me to have all three meats in stock at the same time. As it is impossible for me to purchase meat from the grocery store I seek out local farmers when some special occasion or another has warranted meatloaf and no other recipe will do.

At times like this though, early in the summer when the first flush of grass is waning and our animals are beoming fat enough to butcher, is when I have all three meats in abundance in the store. I make several meatloaves at one time and stock the extras away in the freezer. I cook the extra meatloaves as stated in the recipe and freeze once cooled. I reapply another 1/4 cup ketchup when I reheat.

The uniqueness of this recipe is that the grass fed lamb gives this meatloaf such a wonderful, rich flavor and the pastured veal makes it tender beyond words.

Organic Cooking: Meatloaf From Grass Fed Beef, Pastured Veal, and Grass Fed Lamb

Ingredients:

1 Tbs. olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 celery stalks, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
3 or 4 slices white bread
1/4 cup raw milk
1 lb. grass fed ground beef
1/2 lb. grass fed ground lamb
1/2 lb. ground pastured veal
8 oz. tomato sauce
1 egg, lightly beaten
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1/4 cup ketchup

Directions:

Position a rack in the center of an oven and preheat to 350º F.In a large fry pan over medium-high heat, warm the oil. When the oil is hot, add the onion, celery and garlic and sauté, stirring occasionally, until tender and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes. Set aside.

Tear the bread slices into small pieces, transfer to a food processor and pulverize the bread into crumbs. In a large mixing bowl, combine the bread crumbs and milk, stir until blended and let stand for 2 to 3 minutes.Add the onion-celery mixture to the bread mixture and stir until blended. Add the beef, lamb, veal, tomato sauce, egg, salt and pepper and fold together gently until blended.

Transfer the mixture to a 2 1/2-lb. loaf pan and, using your hands, shape the mixture into an oblong loaf. Spread the ketchup evenly over the top. Bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the meat loaf registers 165ºF, about 1 1/2 hours.

Serves 4 to 6.

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