Serves6 with leftovers
- Active Time:30 min
- Start to Finish:1 1/2 hr
February 2008
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.
Learn the story behind this dish in our column, The Recipe, and view more modern classics that are just like mom’s, except better.
-
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
-
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.
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Pack mixture into a 9- by 5-inch oval loaf in a 13- by 9-inch shallow baking dish or pan.
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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.
