[title subtitle=”words: James Steufix”][/title]
INGREDIENTS
-2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
-1 cup finely chopped onion
-1 celery rib, finely chopped
-1 carrot, finely chopped
-1/2 cup of finely chopped green onion, including the green tops
-4 cloves garlic, minced (about 1 Tablespoon)
-2 teaspoons salt (use 1 1/2 teaspoons if using Italian sausage)
-1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
-2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
-2/3 cup ketchup, divided 1/3 and 1/3
-1 1/2 pounds ground beef (chuck)
-3/4 pound spicy ground pork sausage or Italian sausage*
-1 cup fresh bread crumbs
-2 large eggs, beaten slightly
-1/3 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
*If you don’t have access to spicy ground pork or Italian sausage, mix in a half teaspoon each of fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, and hot sauce into regular ground pork.
METHOD
Preheat oven to 350°F, with rack in middle of oven. Melt butter in a large, thick-bottomed skillet, medium heat. When the butter starts to foam, add the onions, celery, carrot, green onions and garlic and cook for 5 minutes. Cover pan and cook for 5 minutes more, until carrots are tender, stirring every so often. Sprinkle in salt and pepper. Add Worcestershire sauce and 1/3 cup ketchup. Cook for 1 minute, remove from heat to cool.
Once cooled, place vegetables in large bowl with the ground beef, Italian sausage, eggs, breadcrumbs and parsley. Use your hands to mix everything together until combined. Place mixture in a loaf pan (4×8 or 5×9) and press to compact into pan (or form a free-standing loaf and place in rimmed baking pan). Cover meatloaf mixture with remaining ketchup. Bake for 1 hour at 350°F, or until a meat thermometer inserted into center reads 155°F.
Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes. Use a metal spatula to gently lift meatloaf from the pan to a serving plate. Slice thick for burgers. Add toppings of choice, serve on Texas toast or your favorite bread.
