Paradise by the oven hood lights
I love that song by Meatloaf (Paradise by the Dashboard Lights). Sometimes I can even get my husband to sing it along with me. Problem is, that he doesn’t know the words as well as I do, so I end up singing it all by myself. It’s just a funny song and if you’ve never listened to the words, I highly recommend that you do soon and much like this meatloaf, you won’t be disappointed.
I made this bacon wrapped meatloaf for Anthony who has so generously offered to help me with understanding this whole WordPress/Blog thing. He’s quite the IT knowledge base and has already built many websites in his day. I have a new found respect for all bloggers out there, and especially anyone who has built there blog from the ground up. It is not as easy as it may seem. However, this meatloaf is a snap, and with the bacon lattice topping, it’s also really pretty. And who, except vegetarians, doesn’t like bacon? Pepé was so excited, I had to talk him out of wrapping himself in bacon.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Heat a skillet on medium high heat. Heat the olive oil in the pan. Add the onion and celery.
Sauté those veggies until tender. Now add them and the remainder of ingredients (except for the bacon) in a large bowl.
If you don’t have a garlic press, I highly recommend one. Here’s a picture in case you’ve never seen one.
Now get in there and get your hands messy and mix it all together.
Heat up a small patty of the mixture if you want to taste it before you bake it. It’s the only way to know if you like the seasoning and this is the time to adjust it if you wish. Please don’t eat raw meatloaf.
Put mixture in a casserole dish and form into the shape of a rectangle. Place bacon strips on the top. If you don’t like bacon, you can always add catsup to the top instead. Bake for about 1 hour at 350°F or until internal temperature reaches 155°-160°F. If the bacon is still not as brown and crisp as you wish, you can broil the meatloaf for about 5-10 minutes keeping a very close eye on it making sure it doesn’t burn.
Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf
Ingredients
- 1 Pound Ground Beef
- 1 Pound Ground Pork
- 1 Extra Large Egg
- 6-7 Slices Bacon
- 1 Cup Yellow onion Chopped
- 1/2 Cup Celery Chopped
- 1/2 Cup Milk
- 1 Cup Panko Bread Crumbs
- 1 Tablespoon Fresh Parsley Chopped
- 1 Tablespoon Fresh Thyme Stems Removed
- 1 Teaspoon Oregano
- 3 Garlic Cloves
- 2 Tablespoons Extra virgin olive oil
- 1 Teaspoon Salt
- 3/4 Teaspoon Pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and heat a skillet on medium high heat.
- Heat the olive oil in the pan.
- Add the onion and celery. Sauté those veggies until tender.
- Now add them and the remainder of ingredients (except for the bacon) in a large bowl.
- Now get in there and get your hands messy and mix it all together.
- Put mixture in a casserole dish and form into the shape of a rectangular shaped loaf.
- Place bacon strips on the top.
- Bake for about 1 hour at 350°F or until internal temperature reaches 155°-160°F.
- If the bacon is still not as brown and crisp as you wish, you can broil the meatloaf for about 5-10 minutes keeping a very close eye on it making sure it doesn't burn.
Looking good, but I’ve started adding tomato sauce, or paste, or even sometimes I add tomato soup!
I’ve always added tomato sauce in my meatloaf until about 5 years ago when my hubby and I went out to dinner for Valentine’s Day and he ordered meatloaf. He said it was the best ever, so I asked if they would give me the list of ingredients. I have found that chef’s don’t like to give you the recipe, but they will give you a list of ingredients sometimes. Thanks for your input, I might try the tomato paste addition next time.