Meatloaf with Tomato Relish
Scarlett’s “Uncle Rob” has earned Junos. He’s also a member of a wildly popular Canadian band. But, who cares about all that, can the man cook? Isn’t that what you want to know about your pop icons? Can they hold their own in the kitchen, or are they all room service and take-out containers? This accomplished bassist of Our Lady Peace fame is a whiz in the kitchen. And, thankfully for us, we reap the benefits of his culinary magic. His latest: Rock Star Meatloaf. O.k. it’s not his recipe. It Tyler Florences’ of The Food Network (see his recipe and directions below), but Uncle Rob (Scarlett uses his middle name instead) could have come up with it if he had the time. (Just joking Tyler!) With the help of his three gorgeous indentured servents children–Sophie, Chloe and Simon–who also happen to be Scarlett’s “siblings,” our chef prepared the ridiculously moist meatloaf for our New Year’s Eve dinner.
With a hefty ingredient list just to pull-off the meatloaf (nevermind the brilliant green beans and mashed potatoes), shopping was a task the kids enjoyed since there was so much excitment around the meal. They each received a portion of the list that they found in the store.
Ingredients
- For the Tomato Relish:
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 red bell peppers, cored, seeded and finely diced
- 2 tomatoes, halved, seeded, and finely diced
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh flate-leaf parsely
- 1 (12-ounce) bottle ketchup
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- For the meatloaf:
- 2 slices wheat bread, crusts removed, torn into chunks by hand
- 1/4 cup 2% milk
- 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
- 1 pound ground pork
- 2 eggs
- Leaves from 2 fresh thyme sprigs
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 3 to 4 bacon slices
Method
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Coat a skillet with a 2-count of oil and place over medium heat.
Saute the onion, garlic, and bay leaves for a few minutes.
Add the red peppers and cook them for a couple of minutes to soften.
Now add the tomatoes. Stir in the parsley, ketchup, and Worcestershire; season with salt and pepper. Simmer the relish for 5 minutes.
Remove it from the heat; you should have about 4 cups of relish.
Place the torn white bread in a bowl and add the milk to just barely cover, swish the bread around in the milk and let it sit while you get the rest of the ingredients for the meat loaf together.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground beef and pork with 1 1/2 cups of the tomato relish, the eggs, and thyme; season with salt and pepper.
Squeeze the excess milk from the bread and add the soaked bread to the meat mixture.
To test, fry a small hamburger patty of the meatloaf until cooked; the patty should hold together but still have a soft consistency. Taste the burger for seasoning.
Lightly oil a cookie sheet.
Transfer the meat mixture to the center of the cookie sheet and form into a log about 9 inches long and about 4 inches wide.
Coat the top of the meatloaf with another 1/2 cup of the tomato relish.
Lay the bacon across the top lengthwise.
Bake the meatloaf for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until the bacon is crisp and the meatloaf is firm.
Rotate the meat loaf while it's baking every now and then to insure that the bacon browns evenly. Remove the meatloaf from the oven and let it cool a bit before slicing.
Serve with the remaining tomato relish on the side.
Once at home, Chloe eagerly helped her dad in the kitchen. Together they chopped, measured and prepped the relish and molded the meatloaf. With one truly picky eater in the house, the recipe seemed a good choice since the “selective eater” will choke down anything with a dash of ketchup on it. Using an entire bottle of the stuff, score one for Tyler’s meatloaf. Hopefully.
With Uncle Rob working madly in the kitchen, the kids made place cards for everyone. How cute?
With PJ’s on, the kids were ready for some late-night fun.
The relish for the meatloaf was completely insane. I’m pretty sure I could use it as a condiment for everything I ever eat. Scarlett cleaned her plate, devouring every last morsel of her thick slice. The girls had the same reaction. As for the picky eater, drum roll please, the relish and a little extra ketchup were called in, but he ate it. On this night, for cleaning his plate, Simon was the Rock Star.
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Hey, thanks for stopping by!
We're Ceri and Laura, a couple of magazine-editors-turned-food-bloggers. Also, we're mothers obsessed with delicious, healthy, family food. We're constantly thinking of ways to make your time (and our own!) in the kitchen easier and more productive, but still nostalgic for the days when dinner was cereal eaten over the kitchen sink.
4 Comments
Martha Sharpe
January 31, 10:33Kevin made this last night and it was delicious! Liam took his first bite, grinned widely, and declared, “I like it!” Thanks you, SPC.
Ceri Marsh
February 01, 11:51Laura and I saw Uncle Rob this morning and told him how you liked the recipe – I think you made his day!
Natalee
January 31, 13:23Hi there! I have this and the turky piumpkin chili on my list for this week. What can I replace Worcestire sauce with generally? I have an anchovy allergy and haven’t been able to find a veggie version here in town yet.
Ceri Marsh
February 01, 11:52Maybe soy sauce?