It's always a debate at our house:
Should we eat the meat loaf hot out of the oven?
Or just refrigerate the whole thing for Meat Loaf Sandwiches?
I solved the problem by making big meat loaves.
And I make them healthy by adding lots of vegetables.
The spinach gives this meat loaf a strange color, but the taste and texture are just perfect.
Loosely interpreted, Florentine means anything made with spinach.
16oz ground beef (mince) or beef and sausage mixed or turkey 450gr, 15.9oz beef
1 small onion, about 1/2 cup finely chopped 110gr, 3.9oz
2oz mushrooms about 3/4 cup finely chopped 62gr, 2.2oz
1 carrot, about 1/3 cup finely chopped 60gr, 2.1oz
1 rib celery, about 1/3 cup finely chopped 50gr, 1.8oz
2 cloves garlic 8gr, .28oz
8oz frozen spinach 225gr, 8oz
1 tbs olive oil 13.5gr, .48oz
2 eggs 130gr, 4.6oz
1/2 cup bread crumbs 54gr, 1.9oz
1/2 cup red wine or beef stock 120gr, 4.2oz
1/4 cup ketchup 60gr, 2.1oz
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried basil
2 tsp parsley
1 cup tomato sauce 225gr, 8ozFinely chop onion, carrot, celery, mushrooms and mince garlic. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrot, celery, garlic and sauté until they start to get tender, onion will be transparent, about 8 minutes. Add mushrooms and frozen spinach. The heat from the skillet will thaw it. Cook spinach and vegetables, stirring frequently until spinach is just thawed and mixture is well combined. There should be no visible liquid from the spinach. Remove and spread the vegetables on a plate to cool slightly.
In a large bowl lightly beat eggs. Add crumbs, wine, ketchup and herbs and mix well. Add meat and mix. Add about a third of the vegetables and mix (because the veg are hot we are adding them slowly). Add another third, mix. Add remaining vegetables, mix well - at this point it's best to use your hand, kneading it like bread dough. Put into a baking pan large enough to hold it easily and shape into a loaf. Cover and bake at 400F (200C) for 45 minutes. Remove and pour tomato sauce over the top. Bake, uncovered, 15 minutes longer or until done. Remove, let rest 5 - 10 minutes. Slice and serve.
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Entire Recipe / per serving
Calories: 1855 / 464
Total Carbohydrates: 100 / 25
Dietary Fiber: 16 / 8
Total Fat: 99 / 24.5
Saturated Fat: 33 / 8.5
Cholesterol: 856 / 214
Protein: 115 / 29
Calcium: 594 / 148
Sodium: 2600 / 650
Glycemic Index: low
I try to be accurate, but I do not guarantee it. I use 'grams' as the unit of weight; with an approximate conversion to ounces.For more recipes check out my internet cook book: Easy Gourmet Dinners



