Maxed-out Meatloaf

I came across this recipe in a book I've been reading from the library: The Fifth Taste: Cooking With Umami by David and Anna Kasabian. Today was the day to try it, with some substitutions and omissions. Anyway, you can see it in the banner, and a series of photos on Flickr. Apologies for the presentation. It tastes much better than it looks!

Serves 6 to 8 for Dinner

• 2 tablespoons (plus 1) of extra virgin olive oil


• 2 medium onions, diced medium (I used red onions, as I had them handy after making salsa)


• 2 cloves of garlic, minced (fresh from the farmer's market yesterday)


• 5 ounces of cremini or other mushrooms (I skipped this as I don't like mushrooms)


• 1 medium red bell pepper


• 2 eggs


• 2 pounds ground beef (I substituted ground pork, as Jean doesn't let Renee eat mad cow)


• 1 ripe red tomato, diced small and then crushed (I added a roma tomato for more flavor, and removed seeds before adding to recipe)


• 1 cup corn


• 1 cup fine dry bread crumbs (I used store-bought whole wheat, diced it, toasted it in the oven, then used the food processor to crumble it)


• 3 tablespoons soy sauce


• 2 teaspoons white truffle oil (sorry, local grocery store doesn't carry this...)


• 2 teaspoons kosher salt


• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper


• olive oil for brushing


• 1/2 pound sliced hickory-smoked bacon

I know, this is starting to sound downright evil, isn't it?

1. Preheat oven to 450.


2. Heat EVOO in a large skillet. Add onions and saute until translucent (4 minutes). Add garlic (and mushrooms if you dare) and saute until the mixture is carmelized (6 minutes). Set aside to cool.


3. Core and cut the red bell pepper into quarters. Coat with EVOO and broil until barely cooked through. Cool, chop roughly and save.


4. Beat eggs in a large bowl. Add ground beef (pork), cooked veggies, tomato, corn, bread crumbs, soy sauce, truffle oil if you have it, salt and pepper. Gently mix in, but don't overdo it.


5. Spray a pan with olive oil. Put the mix on the pan, shaped twice as wide as it is tall. Drape bacon (!) diagonally across the whole thing, completely covering it. Stake the suckers in place with toothpicks.


6. Place in the middle of the oven, turn the heat down to 375. Bake for one hour, or until internal temperature is 155 degrees. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Yes, it's ridiculously rich, and Jean was worried about overwhelming her digestive system, but it is really good! I had two slices, I'm sorry to say. So anyway, I had to transcribe it so I could make it again some day. Difficulty: medium.

There's one other recipe that I hope to try from this book before I have to return it, but it'll have to be just for me, since Jean doesn't generally go for soups (except that black bean soup, yum!)...

Next time: Japanese Pumpkin Soup with Spiced Candied Pecans