Olive Meatloaf (get PDF)

 There are literally thousands of meatloaf recipes, I'm sure. Nobody makes meatloaf the same way. On one of my more inspirational days, I decided to 'design' a new meatloaf. No doubt I'll 'reinvent' meatloaf again, but I've made this recipe twice so far, having liked it enough to make it again. So here goes....

1. Start off with your standard meatloaf mix (ground beef, bread crumbs, eggs, chopped onion). Add a package of dry soup mix, any flavor you may be partial to. I found some mushroom mix that I used.

2. Very lightly oil a breadboard, and flatten the hamburger out into a square.

3. Spread a liberal amount of green olives over the meat. I was originally going to use black olives, but thought that since the green olives have the pimento inside, there would not be any voids.

4. Spread a nice shredded cheese over the olives. I don't remember what type of cheese I used, so it's your choice.

5. Carefully start at the front, and while peeling the hamburger from the cutting board, roll the hamburger into a loaf shape, as if you were rolling a pastry. Don't worry if some olives or cheese comes spilling out. When you get it into a loaf shape, fix any holes or leaks. Pat the loaf all around to give it a nice uniform shape.

6. Take the loaf from the cutting board to a flat cookie sheet. I used my 8" wide fish turner (spatula) to transport the loaf from the board to the sheet. If you don't have one of these, get one! Be careful, at this stage, the loaf is delicate.

7. With the back of a large spoon, create a trench along the top of the loaf.

8. Make a mixture of Thai Red Curry Paste and ketchup. Note that I consider the Red Curry Paste essential to this recipe. Without it, it will only be half good, believe me. Make your mixture to your preferred taste.

9. Put a liberal amount of the red curry paste / ketchup mixture into the trench. Also brush on the upper half of the loaf.

10. Bake according to standard directions of:
Bake uncovered at 350° F for 40 minutes. Increase oven temperature to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C), and continue baking 15 minutes, to an internal temperature of 160 degrees F (70 degrees C).
That from the internet - I just baked at 375° until the internal temperature was 160°.

11. Remove the loaf from the oven, fill the trench with shredded cheese, and top the cheese with more red curry paste / ketchup mixture. , Put the loaf back in the oven, just until the cheese is melted.

   

12 Remove the loaf from the oven, and let it rest a few minutes before serving - it will help firm it up.

13. Then, slice and eat! (Again, the 8" fish spatula comes in handy!)