Day 24, Quarantine Kitchen, Meatloaf

Growing up with an Italian mother, if there was ground beef, it was made into meatballs, or Polpettone, which was one big meatball made into a loaf smothered in a rich tomato sauce with a side of pasta.
As a kid, I never had Wonder bread or tuna noodle casserole, those were things that were exotic to me since I was getting pasta with tuna fish and homebaked Italian bread.  Don't get me wrong, there were things about this childhood diet that were sublime, but as a kid, all I wanted was for my mom to let me go to my friends' houses on Friday nights to have tuna noodle casserole, that creamy noodle filled casserole topped with crushed toasted potato chips, it was the food of my dreams for a while.  Meatloaf was another dream food since it was usually crowned with ketchup, which you wouldn't find in our house.  My mom and my Nonna were two of the best cooks I've ever had the pleasure of observing, but their repertoire was limited since they didn't use any convenience foods.  As a kid that was all that was on TV, and that's what I wanted.
So, with day 24 dawning with rain, and a bit of a nip in the air, I thought meatloaf would be the perfect comfort food for tonight.

Slow-Cooker Meat Loaf

Serves 4 to 6

2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

4 cups tomato sauce or tomato puree

1/2 cup ketchup

2 tablespoons Worcestershire 

2 tablespoons maple syrup

In a saucepan or the slow cooker, saute the onion until it is translucent.  Remove 1/4 cup of the onion, and set aside.  

Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.  If you are using a saucepan, transfer the mixture to the slow cooker, and set on high while making the meatloaf. 

1 piece sandwich bread, torn into pieces

2 tablespoons milk

1 1/2 pounds organic ground beef

1/4 sauteed onion

1/4 cup ketchup

1 tablespoon Worcestershire

1 1/2 teaspoons seasoned salt (I used Penzey's 4S)

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 large egg, beaten

3 slices bacon

Put the sandwich bread and milk into a bowl, and let the bread absorb the milk. 

Add the beef, reserved sauteed onion, ketchup, Worcestershire, seasoned salt, mustard, and egg.  

Stir to combine.  

Cook's Note:  At this point, I will take a bit of the mixture and fry it in a small saute pan to see if the seasoning is correct---this is a good check on whether it suits your taste or not. 

Shape into a loaf, and place in the sauce in the slow cooker.  Top with the bacon, and spoon some of the sauce over the meatloaf. 
Cook on high for 4 hours, or low for 6 to 7 hours, until an instant-read meat thermometer registers 170 degrees.  Remove from the sauce, and allow to rest for 10 minutes before slicing.  Skim the excess fat from the sauce before serving alongside the sliced meatloaf.   Any leftover sauce can be refrigerated for up to 1 week or frozen for up to 2 months. 

As we head into this 4th week of self-isolation, there appears to be some encouraging news, although the number of deaths is still staggering.  Please stay at home and stay well, this is a critical period and you and your loved ones need to be well.  ciao for now.

Where's The Beef?

On Monday night Dr. C. and I took at class at Great News here in San Diego given by Stan Glenn and Chris Brill the guys at Iowa Meat Farms/Siesels meats.  These two men teach you more about meats than you will ever learn in culinary school and the class is terrific; that said, I'm not sure I'll eat meat again until next week, I'm still on overload! 
Stan mentioned that the price of beef was going to sky-rocket, and if you've been to the store lately, you've seen the spike in price.  The cattle supply is dwindling due to lots of factors: droughts, pasture land lost in wild fires, and foreign demand.  Outbid by the Japanese, Koreans, Mexicans and Russians for beef, there is now less beef in your market than there was in the 50's.  

A spokesman for the livestock Marketing Information Center says that many supermarkets are cutting steaks thinner, and major steakhouses are serving dinners on smaller plates with more vegetables---charging higher prices. 

Experts say it may take up to three years for the beef supply to restore the herds to their pre-drought, wild fire levels.  That means your meat loaf will cost a bit more in the future.

OOOPS, I mean THIS meatloaf.

Sticking to cheaper cuts you can make some stunning dinners from chuck roast, and bottom round which are available everywhere.  My favorite way to use a chuck roast is for a riff on Julia Child's Boeuf Bourguignon.
Delicious the day it's made, it's actually better the next day.  Marinating it the night before gives the meat a special flavor and making it in your slow cooker will give you extra time during the day to soak in a hot tub, or do errands. 
 Ode To Julia Boeuf Bourguignon

Serves 8

4 tbsp (/60 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

3 cups/ (7520 ml)   full full-bodied red wine, such as French Burgundy, or Merlot, Zinfandel, or Chianti (see Slow Cooker Savvy)

2 medium shallots, coarsely chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 tsp (4.8 g) dried thyme

2 bay leaves

1 1/2 tsp (7.2 g) salt

1/2 tsp (2.3 g) freshly ground black pepper

4 pounds lb (/1.80kg8 kg) beef chuck or shoulder roast into 2-inch pieces, trimming the fat

2 large onions, coarsely chopped

3 tbsp beef (45 ml) soup base, or demi-glace (see slow SlowCooker Savvy)

4 tbsp/55 g (45 g) unsalted butter, softened

1/4 pound lb (/115 g)   pearl onions, peeled

1 pound lb (/450 455 g) Cremini cremini mushrooms, cleaned and quartered

2 tbsp (15g) all-purpose flour (optional)

1.      In a large bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons of the oil, the wine, shallots, garlic, thyme, bay leaves, salt, and pepper.

2.      Place the short ribs into in a 1-gallon zipper zipper-top plastic bag, and pour the marinade over the ribs. Seal the bag and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, or up to 24 hours.

3.      Strain the marinade into a small saucepan, and bring to a boil.

4.      Add the soup base or demi glace to the marinade and set aside.

5.      In a large skillet, heat the remaining 2 tbsp of olive oil, and brown the short ribs, a few at a time, transferring them to the insert of a 4 to 6-quart4- to 6-qt/3.5- to 5.5-l slow cooker when they are  done.

6.      Pour the marinade into the pan and bring to a boil, scraping up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Transfer the marinade, to the slow cooker insert.

7.      Cover and cook on low for 10 hours, or on high for 5 hours, until the meat is tender.

8.      Remove the meat to a platter, and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. Strain the sauce juices into a fat separator, or skim the fat from the top of the sauce and set aside.

9.      In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium high medium-high heat, and cook the onions for 2 to 3 minutes, until fragrant. Add the mushrooms and sauté until the mushrooms have turned golden. Add the sauce to the onions and mushrooms and bring the sauce to a boil.

1   If you think the sauce is thick enough to your liking, return it to the slow cooker along with the beef.

11 Otherwise, in a small bowl, knead together the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and the flour. Whisk in the butter mixture, add 1 teaspoon at a time, and continue whisking until the sauce returns to a boil and is thickened.

12  Return the sauce and the short ribs to the slow cooker and keep on the warm setting until you are ready to serve.This is delicious served with Boursin mashed potatoes!

 

Slow Cooker Savvy:

The Savvy: The type wine you use here makes all the difference in the world; use a full bodied red such as a French Burgundy, Chianti, Zinfandel or Merlot. Wine that has too much tannin, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, will give the stew a “wine-y” flavor. To counter act this I recommend that you stay away from Cabernet Sauvignon; although Cabernet blends will work.

More Savvy:  Use a soup base such as Superior Touch, Better than Bouillon or a demi-glace such as Provimi or More Than Gourmet, rather than stock or broth.  Cheaper cuts of meat like Chuck will render a lot of liquid, if you add still more, it will become watered down.

 

This recipe is from my upcoming book, Mediterranean Slow Cooker which will be out in October, 2012.  Take a look at this cover!