MEATLOAF BY ANY OTHER NAME IS…

…still meatloaf.

We are in the process of “decluttering” After one has lived in the same house for many years that becomes a big project. We have gotten rid of clothes, but the greatest challenge has been our books. Even though we have tried to be ruthless,  getting rid of a book – no matter how old and how unread it has been for awhile – is like getting rid of an old friend. Included in the books up for consideration for banishment are our cookbooks. Some choices have been easy. Who needs two copies of anything? Others have been more difficult. Even minus the rejects, we still have more than enough cookbooks for one couple.

Now we have started on kitchen gear. We have already given our croquembouche molds to our daughters. (Doesn’t every kitchen need two croquembouche molds?) The corn mill that I used when I wrote about making your own nixtamalized corn did not make the cut. Neither did the deep fryer nor the cheese-making kit.

One prize that I had totally forgotten about is an enameled cast-iron terrine mold. It is such a beautiful piece of cookware, that I couldn’t resist polishing it up. I checked out a number of recipes for patés and terrines. Most called for ingredients that I didn’t have or sounded like more trouble than I wanted to expend. Maybe that explains why the bakeware was hidden away.

Instead, I decided to make a meatloaf. After all, lots of folks declare American meatloaf to be the poor country cousin to fancy French paté. I used a very basic, simple recipe. I didn’t have any bacon for lining the terrine or topping the meatloaf. You can be as elaborate as you wish.  I baked my meatloaf a little longer than I should have, so watch your cooking time. My end result, topped with tomato sauce and served with broccoli, turned out to be a good middle-of-the-week meal.

RECIPE

Meatloaf Made in a French Terrine

Ingredients

• 1 thick slice sourdough bread, crusts removed and cubed
• ½ cup whole milk
• dried bread crumbs
• 2 large eggs
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 3 crimini mushrooms, chopped
• ¼ teaspoon ground thyme
• 1/8 teaspoon ground bay leaf
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons tomato ketchup
• salt and pepper

Method

1. Grease a terrine and its cover heavily and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, soak the bread cubes in the milk until they are well moistened and can be broken apart with a fork. Add just enough dried bread crumbs to absorb any excess moisture
3. Break the eggs into the mixture and stir well until completely combined. Add the ground beef, onion, mushrooms, thyme, bay leaf, garlic powder, and ketchup. Stir until well combined
4. Correct seasoning with salt and pepper.
5. Pack the mixture into the well-greased terrine. Cover and bake in the middle of an oven pre-heated to 350°F for 45-50 minutes.
6. Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes. Slice the meatloaf  while still in the pan. Serve with tomato sauce.