Ritzy Meat Loaf

 

Ritzy Meat Loaf

Layers of moist ground turkey and veal, sautéed mushrooms and ham make this meatloaf posh enough to be called a terrine. By any name, it makes a flavourful winter dinner, and any leftovers are good served cold with a salad.

Ingredients:

3 tbsp (45 mL) olive oil
½ lb (250 g) button mushrooms, quartered
1 onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and freshly ground pepper
½ cup (125 mL) dry bread crumbs
⅓ cup (75 mL) freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 eggs
2 tbsp (25 mL) finely minced sage leaves
1 tbsp (15 mL) Dijon mustard
1 lb (500 g) ground turkey
1 lb (500 g) ground veal
1 slice good-quality cooked ham, about 4 oz (125 g), ¼ inch (5 mm) thick
Sage leaves for garnish

Directions:

In a large nonstick skillet, heat 2 tbsp (25 mL) oil over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms, then cook, stirring often, for 5 to7 minutes or until golden and tender. Reduce heat to medium. Add 2 tbsp (25 mL) onion and1 minced clove garlic to skillet, then cook, stirring often, for 2 to 3 minutes or until onion is soft but not browned. Scrape mushroom mixture into a fine sieve set over a bowl and let cool completely. Discard any liquid in bowl. Set skillet aside but do not wash.

In a food processor, pulse mushroom mixture until finely chopped. Scrape back into bowl and season to taste. Set aside.

In same skillet, heat remaining oil over medium heat. Add remaining onion, then cook, stirring, for 5 to 7 minutes or until onion is soft but not brown. Stir in remaining garlic, then cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Scrape onion mixture into a large bowl and let cool completely. Set skillet aside but do not wash.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).

Stir bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, eggs, sage, mustard, ½ tsp (2 mL) salt and ¼ tsp(1 mL) pepper into onion mixture. Gently mix in turkey and veal until well combined. Form about 1 tsp (5 mL) mixture into a tiny patty. Cook patty in skillet over medium heat, turning often, until no longer pink inside. Taste cooked mixture for seasoning. Add more salt and pepper to raw mixture if necessary.

Cut ham into ½-inch-wide (1-cm) strips. Spoon one-third of turkey mixture into a9 x 5-inch (2 L) loaf pan, spreading surface level. Top with mushrooms, spreading surface level. Top mushrooms with another third of turkey mixture. Top turkey mixture with the ham, arranging strips of ham lengthwise in pan. Top ham with remaining turkey mixture, spreading surface level.

Set pan on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake meatloaf for about 1¼ hours or until a meat thermometer inserted into centre of loaf registers 170°F (75°C). Let stand for 5 minutes. Drain off any excess fat from pan, then turn out loaf onto a serving platter. If any meat loaf sticks to bottom of pan, carefully remove it and replace on top of loaf. Garnish with fresh sage. Cut into thick slices and serve with Winter Ketchup.

Serves 6 to 8