Monday, March 11, 2013

(48.3% Meat)Loaf Stretching Meat Part 3

http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/03/483-meatloaf-stretching-meat-part-3.html
(I know this is not meatloaf.  This is the sweet and white potato mash with cottage cheese I plopped on Loaf #2)


You know I'm all about the Frugal Eco Farm Fresh Feasting, how I stretch meat by making tacos, and burgers.  I do not hide vegetables in other dishes.  I am completely aboveboard with my family when it comes to adding additional vegetables in traditionally non-additional-vegetable foods (like eggplant in the spaghetti sauce or spinach in the pizza crust).

Ok, I lied, in fact I've totally been known to slip a beet into a blueberry smoothie, though I try to own up to it if I'm asked a direct question involving specific vegetables.

http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/03/483-meatloaf-stretching-meat-part-3.html


But when I make meatloaf, the family totally knows that there's more than just meat in that loaf. When I saw ground pork marked down at the store, I knew it was time to make up a batch of meatloaf, Farm Fresh Feast style.

Today, we weighed the ingredients (and apparently didn't take photos), did the math, and in fact, this "meat" loaf contains 48.3% meat.  What's the rest?  I'm glad you asked. Meatloaf for me is more of a concept recipe, as Alanna of A Veggie Venture and Kitchen Parade would say.  I use a mix of meats (usually ground beef and pork), a bunch of veggies, something dry, and some sauce.  Sometimes I add an egg or two if it seems too loose.  Sometimes I add salt and pepper or other seasonings. I make this into 2 small loaves and freeze one uncooked for a later meal.  Luckily I took some photos of the second time 'round.

http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/03/483-meatloaf-stretching-meat-part-3.html

http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/03/483-meatloaf-stretching-meat-part-3.html
I'm blue, bah doo dee dah . . .

(48.3% Meat)Loaf (makes 2 loaves)

1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
4-6 cups (2+ pounds!) finely chopped vegetables (I used a put-up blend of onions, carrots, celery, bell peppers, garlic, parsley, and Swiss chard stems)
2-3 cups dry stuff (today I used day old Italian bread, left over from this dish, and cheddar French fried onions, both finely ground in my food processor)
1/2 cup sauce (today I used leftover BBQ sauce from a take out night, other times I use ketchup)
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup ketchup for topping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  In a large mixing bowl (I use the refurbished far cheaper version of this), combine meats thoroughly.  Add in vegetables, dry stuff, and sauces (not the 1/4 cup ketchup).  Pack into 2 loaf pans or 8 mini loaf pans (mine are not full).  Bake for 45 minutes, top with ketchup.  Bake an additional 5-10 minutes.  

If you're going to freeze one loaf unbaked, line the loaf pan with plastic wrap, wax paper or parchment paper.  Pack in the meat.  Cover with more wrap or paper, and freeze overnight until solid.  Then you can pop the frozen loaf out of the pan, wrap it in freezer paper (LABEL IT!), and store.  When meatloaf fits into your meal plan, remove the wrapping, place the loaf back into the pan to thaw in the fridge overnight, and follow baking directions above.

Do you hide vegetables in other foods?

This post is linked with the Clever Chicks Blog Hop at Chicken Chick, What's Cookin Wednesday at Buns In My Oven, What's In The Box at In Her Chucks, Taste and Tell Thursdays, the Farm Girl Blog Fest at Let This Mind Be In You.

http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/03/483-meatloaf-stretching-meat-part-3.html

18 comments:

  1. I don't hide vegetables but we use zucchini, carrot and dikon for noodles, I put spinach in smoothies, stuff like that
    and like you I like to pump up recipes and add vegetables but my girls aren't too picky
    I saw you on the clever chicks blog hop
    I would love if you came to visit my blog
    http://pleasegivepeasachance.blogspot.com/2013/03/cabbage-rolls.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Katherine,
      You have a lovely blog--I've just heard about Whole30 this morning on a military spouse website.
      What a great idea to use daikon for noodles.

      Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  2. I've been known to hide, unless specifically asked too. Your loaf with 48.3% meat look and sounds delicious.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Marlene,
      It's funny, the things kids will pick up on. Mine won't ask "are there vegetables in this smoothie", they will ask "are there beets in this smoothie"?
      Thanks!

      Delete
  3. Hey Kir, Fascinating post as always, how you are always using something from here, something from there. Some time, I'd love to see a post on how you keep track of what you've got in the freezer, the pantry, etc. I am really good about getting stuff INTO the freezer but much less good about getting it OUT: I may as well have never bothered, frankly because 90% of the time, some time later I just throw it away.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alanna, that's what my kids are for--they take stuff OUT of the freezers so I can rearrange and put it back and know what I've got! It helps that I have a little fruit and veg freezer (now visible on the FFF FB page thanks to the unexpected defrosting last week), a larger meat freezer, plus the one above the fridge. I'm always shoving new purchases in one or another and then I need to haul everything out to reorganize. I did find some very old beet greens in the freezer last week--but I am my father's daughter, so I'll be tossing them into a blue smoothie and drinking them down since I can't bear to throw them away.
      Thanks!

      Delete
  4. Sometimes when I use ground meat for a dish, I mix beef, pork, and veal... that is the standard especially when cooking a Macedonian dish. :) So now I am going to have to do this veggie mash thing that you do because it looks so darn good!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kate,
      Macedonian--and Swedish, and I think Italian too. Great minds think alike, and food is the universal language!
      Thanks!

      Delete
  5. What they don't know, can't hurt them...or something to that effect. I love this part of the post: What's the rest? I'm glad you asked. I quite enjoy made up conversations between the blogger and the reader.

    Back in my meat loafing making days (even when I ate meat, I would make it, but never eat it; it always kind of freaked me out, although only 48% meat sounds tempting), I would make it in a free form pan, so all the grease dripped off, which was important because I would wrap it in bacon, and if you didn't allow the grease to drip down, the bacon would never get crispy which is how I used to like it. Now that's a whole lot of meat.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Meghan,
      I love crispy bacon . . . I bake it for that reason. One of the few meat products (tuna in all shapes/forms would be on that list too) I would have a hard time parting with if I went veg.
      Thanks!

      Delete
  6. We love meatloaf. And our dear, picky son has now tried it and it a convert! Yay! I think we are coming into the days of more adventurous eating. My husband likes bacon on his, on the rare occasions we have it in the house. My son and I like a sauce of 2 parts ketchup and 1 part brown sugar. We make mini freeform meatloaves most of the time. More crispy edges that way.

    As for the hiding veggie things – no, I don't do it. I think my picky son is a bit of a super-taster. He can detect any amount of anything in any dish. So we go for full disclosure at our house. You can either eat it, or not, as long as you are polite about it. Works for us. Even without our food issues, I was always uncomfortable with the idea of hiding foods in other foods. How do you introduce foods and teach kids to like them, or not, if you can't talk about what you are eating? Makes for interesting discussions as people have really strong opinions on this topic.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sarah,
      You're absolutely right--no point in hiding (unless I do have a point of putting beets in the blueberry smoothie, but the family has figured out that if I think the meal is not veggie enough for dinner I'll make a smoothie to serve alongside). My kids now prefer eggplant and fennel in spaghetti sauce--after years of helping me make it and knowing all the ingredients.

      Your son could have a very lucrative job as a flavor chemist . . .

      Delete
  7. This looks awesome! I don't consider it hiding veggies...merely enhancing the dish with more vitamins and nutrients...that happen to be "hidden" :)

    Thanks for sharing and linking up!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Heather,
      Harder to hide veggies when your kids are about as tall as you are and can see what all is on the counter. So they join me in the veggifying everything.
      Thanks!

      Delete
  8. I've been known to hide white beans (pureed) in a turkey meatloaf. It makes it really moist, tho a bit heavier than the usual loaf. My favorite meatloaf I have yet to recreate but it involved leftover roast veggies in the mix. I somehow made a really good one out of leftover red lentils, again, unable to recreate. I guess that is the beauty of a meatloaf tho!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Wow, all 3 of those options sound delicious to me. You're right, meatloaf has a beauty of it's own.

      Thanks!

      Delete
  9. Hi Kirsten I so love your web blog. So happy to finally found your website.

    ReplyDelete