Meat-Loaf with Bacon and Prunes

SERVES 6 WITH LEFTOVERS
ACTIVE TIME:30 MIN START TO FINISH:1 1/2 HR

This is the perfect antidote to the Sunday blues, not least because there will be enough left over to pack sandwiches for Monday's lunch. A mix of beef, pork, and bacon ensures meatiness, with Worcestershire sauce, chopped prunes, and cider vinegar added for good balance and occasional suggestions of sweetness. Because the loaf is baked without a loaf pan, there's plenty of well-browned crust to go around.

Ingredients

1 cup fine fresh bread crumbs (from 2 slices firm white sandwich bread)
1/3 cup whole milk
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium celery rib, finely chopped
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 pound bacon (about 4 slices), chopped
1/2 cup pitted prunes, chopped
1 1/2 pounds ground beef chuck
1/2 pound ground pork (not lean)
2 large eggs
1/3 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
GARNISH: cooked bacon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.

Soak bread crumbs in milk in a large bowl. Meanwhile, cook onion, garlic, celery, and carrot in butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes.
Cover skillet and reduce heat to low, then cook until carrot is tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, allspice, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 1/2 teaspoons pepper.
Add to bread-crumb mixture.
Finely chop bacon and prunes in a food processor, then add to onion mixture along with beef, pork, eggs, and parsley and mix together with your hands.
Pack mixture into a 9- by 5-inch oval loaf in a 13- by 9-inch shallow baking dish or pan.
Bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted into center of meatloaf registers 155°F, 1 to 1 1/4 hours. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
COOKS' NOTE: Cooked meatloaf keeps, chilled, 3 days.

RECIPE BY IAN KNAUER

FEBRUARY 2008 Issue of Gourmet Magazine
PHOTOGRAPH BY QUENTIN BACON

Shepherds Pie with Scallion-Cheese Crust

Ingredients:

For the filling:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 pound minced British lamb
1 pound minced beef
2 medium onions, peeled and chopped
3 carrots, peeled and chopped very small
1/2 pound cremini mushrooms
1 level tablespoon tomato puree
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 level tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 cup red wine
1 1/2 cups fresh beef stock
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the crust:
2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes
2 tablespoons butter
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup scallions, cleaned and chopped
1 cup mature Cheddar, coarsely grated

Directions:

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in a Dutch oven or deep saute pan. Brown the lamb and beef. Remove the meat from the pan with a slotted spoon. Add the onions to the pan and saute until the onions are tinged brown at the edges - about 5 minutes. Add the chopped carrots and cook for 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms, tomato puree, thyme, parsley and cinnamon. Stir and saute for 2 minutes. Next, stir in the flour, which will soak up the juice, then stir in the wine and the beef stock. Taste and add salt and pepper, as needed. Return the meat to the pan and bring to a boil. Cover, turn down the heat to low and simmer for about 30 minutes until the lamb is fully cooked.

Peel the potatoes, cut them into large even-sized pieces and place into a pot of cold, salted water. Bring the water to a boil and cook potatoes until they are tender, about 10 minutes. (Potatoes are done when a knife can easily go through.)

When the potatoes are done, drain off the water, return them to the saucepan, cover with a clean tea cloth to absorb the steam and leave them for about 5 minutes. Next, add the butter and mash them to a puree. Season with salt and pepper. When the meat is ready, spoon it into a 9-by-13-inch baking dish and level it out with the back of the spoon. After that, spread the mashed potato evenly all over. Sprinkle the scallions on top of the potato, scatter the cheese over the scallions and bake the pie until the top is crusty and golden, about 25 minutes.

Recipe courtesy of Michael Chiarello

Chili Rubbed Skirt Steak

Ingredients

Serves 4
4 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons light-brown sugar
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Coarse salt and ground pepper
2 1/2 to 3 pound beef skirt steak, cut into 8 even pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil

Directions

Heat broiler with rack 4 inches from heat. In a small bowl, combine chili powder, coriander, sugar, oregano, 1 tablespoon coarse salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
Coat steaks evenly on both sides with oil, then spice mixture, patting to adhere.
Place half the steaks on a rimmed baking sheet or broiler pan.
Broil, without turning, until medium-rare, 5 to 8 minutes, depending on thickness.
Transfer to a large platter, and cover with aluminum foil; let rest 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, broil remaining steaks; transfer to a large plate, let cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate to use later for Steak Sandwich with Peppers.
Remove foil and divide steaks among four serving plates. Drizzle with any accumulated juices, and serve with Romaine-Heart Salad.

Grape Jelly Meatballs

Cook Time: 1 hour
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Serving size= 6

Ingredients:

3/4 large eggs
3/4 medium onion, peeled and chopped
1 1/2 lb Ground beef, 95% lean
7 1/2 oz Concord grape jelly
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 1/4 tsp fresh lemon juice
3/4 cup bread crumbs, plain
9 oz chili sauce
1/4 tsp salt

Directions:
1. Combine in a large sauce pan chili sauce, grape jelly and lemon; simmer.
2. Meanwhile mix together ground beef, egg, salt, pepper, onion and bread crumbs; mixing well.
3. Roll into small balls and drop into sauce and boil on medium for 1 hour.

Note: if you prefer and want to save some time you do not have to brown the meatballs first. They will brown in the sauce. Excellent served with spaghetti noodles or as a party snack.

Cheeseburgers with Roquefort cheese

SERVES: 4

INGREDIENTS

2 ounces Roquefort cheese, softened
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 pounds ground sirloin
Four 1/2-inch-thick slices of sweet onion, such as Vidalia
Four 1/2-inch-thick beefsteak tomato slices
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Vegetable oil, for the grill
4 kaiser rolls, split
4 ounces arugula

DIRECTIONS

In a small bowl, blend the Roquefort with the butter. Scrape the butter onto plastic wrap and roll into a 4-inch cylinder. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour. Slice the butter into 4 disks.
Gently shape the ground sirloin into 4 thick patties. Using your thumb, make a depression in the center of each patty and fill with a disk of Roquefort butter. Fold the meat over to encase the butter completely and gently pat the burger into a plump, round patty.
Light a grill. Thread each onion slice onto a skewer. Brush the onion and tomato slices with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Lightly brush the grate with vegetable oil. Grill the onions over a medium-hot fire until charred and tender, about 5 minutes per side. Grill the tomato slices until charred, about 1 minute per side.
Season the burgers with salt and pepper and grill over a medium-hot fire until browned and cooked through, about 6 minutes per side. Transfer to a platter and let stand for 2 minutes. Brush the cut sides of the rolls with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil and grill until lightly browned, about 10 seconds. Set the burgers on the rolls, top with the onion, tomato and arugula and serve.

MAKE AHEAD The Roquefort butter can be refrigerated for 2 days or frozen for 1 month. The uncooked burgers can be refrigerated for 6 hours.

Sautéd Fillets of Beef with Stuffed Mushroom Caps and Espagnole Sauce

Ingredients

6 Fillets of beef
6 large mushroom caps
1 cup of bread crumbs
3 tbsp melted butter (two tbsp for the bread crumbs and 1 tbsp for the mushroom stuffing)
1 tbsp parsley
1 tbsp finely minced onion

Directions for Stuffing for Mushroom Caps.

Clean and finely chop six mushroom caps; add one tablespoon each of parsley and onion finely chopped, and one tablespoon butter. Moisten with Espagnole Sauce (see below)

Espagnole Sauce
Ingredients

1/4 cup butter
Sprig of parsley
1 slice carrot
6 peppercorns
1 slice onion
5 tablespoons flour
Bit of bay leaf
2 cups Brown Stock
Sprig of thyme
Salt and pepper

Directions

Cook butter with carrot, onion, bay leaf, thyme, parsley, and peppercorns, until brown, stirring constantly, care being taken that butter is not allowed to burn; add flour, and when well browned, add stock gradually. Bring to boiling-point, strain, and season with salt and pepper.

Directions for beef

Prepare and cook six fillets Put a sautéd stuffed mushroom cap on each, sprinkle with buttered crumbs, and bake until crumbs are browned. Remove to serving dish. Pour Espagnole around beef fillets

(From Fannie Farmer Cookbook)

Bleu Cheese and Bacon Burgers

Recipe courtesy of Sandra Lee

For Bleu Cheese Butter:
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons bleu cheese crumbles

For the Burgers:
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
1/2 cup bleu cheese crumbles (recommended: Treasure Cave)
1/4 cup real bacon pieces (recommended: Hormel)
1 tablespoon Montreal steak seasoning (recommended: McCormick Grill Mates)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 onion rolls, toasted
Lettuce, tomato, onion
Sliced avocado, optional

For bleu cheese butter:
In a small bowl with a fork, smash together butter and 2 tablespoons bleu cheese crumbles; set aside.
For the burgers:
In a mixing bowl, stir to combine ground beef, 1/3 cup bleu cheese crumbles, bacon pieces, and steak seasoning. Wet your hands to prevent sticking and shape into 4 patties slightly larger than the buns. Cover with plastic and set aside in refrigerator.

Set up grill for direct cooking over high heat. Brush and oil grate before cooking. Salt and pepper burgers and place on hot grill. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes per side for medium. Serve hot on toasted onion roll. Spread with bleu cheese butter, lettuce, tomato, onion, and sliced avocado, if using.

INDOOR: Follow instructions for preparing burgers. Preheat broiler. Place burgers on wire rack over foil lined baking sheet or broiler pan. Broil 6 inches from heat source for 4 to 5 minutes per side for medium.

Slow Cooker Tuscan Beef Stew

provided by Campbell's Kitchen

Ingredients
1 can (10 3/4 oz.) Campbell's® Condensed Tomato Soup
1 can (10 1/2 oz.) Campbell's® Condensed Beef Broth
1/2 cup dry red wine or 1/2 cup water
2 lb. beef for stew , cut into 1" pieces
1 can (14 1/2 oz.) diced Italian-style tomatoes
3 large carrots , cut into 1" pieces
1 tsp. Italian seasoning , crushed
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
2 cans (about 16 oz. each ) white kidney beans (cannellini) , rinsed and drained

Cooking Instructions
MIX soup, broth, wine, beef, tomatoes, carrots, Italian seasoning and garlic powder in 3 1/2-qt. slow cooker.

COVER and cook on LOW 8 to 9 hr. or until done.*

STIR in beans. Turn heat to HIGH and cook 10 min.

TIP: * Or on HIGH 4 to 5 hr.

Serve with egg noodles and a mixed green salad. For dessert serve your favorite Pepperidge Farm® layer cake.