Meatloaf Surprise!

Ingredients:
1 small onion minced
2 eggs
2 pounds very lean ground beef
1 1/2 pounds potatoes, peeled and quartered
10 oz frozen spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
3 cups of tomato puree or crushed tomatoes
3/4 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup parsley
1/4 grated Parmesan
1/4 cup green onions
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon of olive oil
2 teaspoons horseradish
salt, pepper


Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. In a large saucepan, bring water and potatoes to boil. Cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and mash together with milk, sour cream, butter, salt, pepper, green onion, horseradish. Set aside. In a large bowl, mix together the ground beef, bread crumbs, egg, onion Parmesan, salt, pepper, parsley 1/3 cup tomatoes and olive oil. On a large (at least 14x12 inch) sheet of waxed paper, pat meat into a 11x9 inch rectangle. On top, spread the mashed potatoes, leaving a 1 inch border. Repeat with the spinach. It should look something like this:





Then, starting at the smaller end, gently roll the meat away from you, while slowly removing the waxed paper at the same time. This is very similar to the way one would make a sushi roll or a jelly roll. Use a spatula if needed to help loosen the meat from the waxed paper. Place the rolled meat, seam side down in a 13x8 inch baking dish. Pour the tomato mixture over the meatloaf and bake uncovered for 1 hour 15 minutes. Allow to stand at least 5 minutes after removing it from the oven before slicing and serving.

My thoughts:

After a few weeks of pretty much nonstop Asian cookery, we decided to go in the absolute opposite direction and try something more kitschy retro Americana. Let me tell you, it is so good! The horseradish gives it a kick and beyond the novelty factor, it is basically a whole meal in one. I love the tomato sauce on top. I read a book once where the author talks about eating meatloaf with "tomato gravy" and while I am not sure if this is quite it, the tomatoes really do take on the flavor of the meat and seasonings and is so tasty. I do recommend using very lean ground beef for this recipe because there is no place for the grease to go except into the potatoes or pooled on the bottom of the pan. We used 90% lean and the meatloaf was virtually grease free.