Meat Loaf with Blue Cheese Filling

As you are accustomed by now, after the translation of the recipe in Romanian, comes the original English one. This is a personal’s Josceline Dimbleby’s variation of the American type of meat loaf from her book “Marvellous Meals with Mince”, 1982. She recommends to try it with baked potatoes, cooked in the oven at the same time, and a green salad or baby carrots. Or all at the same time, I say. You can also check her other recipes I followed, such as beef and anchovy meatballs with soured cream , cheesy fish cakes with spring onions , mousaka with Gruyère cheese . In Romania there is something similar to this recipe, called “drob” and it has a whole egg inside, plus it is made with lamb meat. For a variation, you can follow this traditional drob , but please use Google translate or any other app for translating because it is in Romanian. I chose this recipe over other as I find it very easy to follow and I also learn some interesting facts, too, that are said the way I understand and like. 🙂

Meat Loaf with Blue Cheese Filling

Serves 4-5

Ingredients:

• 450 g/ 1 lb beef mince (please buy good quality beef and mince it at home or at the shop, if you want to)
• 75 g/ 3 oz finely chopped mushrooms
• 50 g/ 2 oz fresh breadcrumbs
• 100 g/ 4 oz streaky bacon, chopped finely
• 1 clove of garlic, chopped finely
• 1 small onion, peeled and chopped finely
• 1 tsp/ 5 ml oregano or thyme
• 3 tbsp / 3×15 ml tomato ketchup (the book mentions this but I find it hard to believe, though I may be wrong too, that it is the ketchup we know today  and it might be the tomato juice with pulp made at home or bought)
• 1 large egg (size 1-2), beaten
• salt and black pepper

For the filling:

• 100 g/ 4 oz Danish blue cheese (you can replace with any other blue cheese I guess, if you like)
• 1 tbsp/ 15 ml single cream or top of the milk (I find it hard to understand this top of the milk but probably others do)
• 1 egg, beaten
• a good pinch of cayenne pepper
• 3 tbsp/ 3×15 ml tomato ketchup (same as above)
• a few sprigs of parsley, to garnish

Method:

• In a bowl mix all the ingredients (except those for the filling) together thoroughly and season well with salt and pepper. Grease a 2 lb (1 kg) loaf tin. Heat the oven to Gas Mark 4/ 180°C, 350°F.
• Spoon half the mixture into the bread tin. Crumble the cheese in a small bowl, mix well with the cream or top of the milk and beaten egg and add the cayenne pepper. Spread this on the layer of meat in the tin. Spoon the remaining meat mixture evenly on top. Bake in the centre of the oven for 1 hour and then remove from the oven.
• Turn up the oven to Gas Mark 9/ 240°C, 475°F. Loosen the sides of the loaf with a knife and turn it out very gently on to an ovenproof serving dish. Smear the loaf all over with the tomato ketchup and put back into the oven, cooking for 10-15 minutes. Serve garnished with sprigs of parsley.

Enjoy your meal!

Elena G

Going Indian IV

Hello! I invite you to go Indian again, with a delicious korma, chicken korma. I must say chicken is not the best of meat but it is light and if freshly cooked, delicious. All kinds of meat are good as long as they are eaten with moderation. I found out that myself, long time ago, when exaggerating with meat, I felt so sick, I hated the sight of it for weeks. Well, when it is too much, it is too much. I don’t want to be boring or get bored, although sometimes, both happen, at the same time. It is just a passing moment. 🙂 Continue reading, please. 😉 Or not.

Before I get to the actual recipe, I would like to recommend something. I just don’t know how to introduce it. It goes well with this recipe and any Indian and Asian food: “The Arabian Nights: Tales from a Thousand and One Nights”. I started reading it and got immersed into a very different world, beautiful and unique, quite like Indian food. They both come from Asia, in the books there are several references and stories about India so, yes, it goes down well. Like a good wine, imho. I so amazed by this book that I started reading it after so many years. When I was a child I read a few stories, and now, getting some volumes of it (I don’t have them all, and what I read is really from a 1987 Romanian edition) I love it. Read it yourself and I think you would love it too.

Back to food, that is an important part of the Tales. Here it comes chicken korma, with a home made korma. I got the recipe from “Cookshelf Chicken” by Tom Bridge, looong time ago.

Chicken Korma

Serves 4-6 

Ingredients:

• 750 g (1 lb/ 10 oz) chicken meat, cut into cubes
• 300 ml (1/2 pint / 1 1/4 cups) double (heavy) cream
• 1/2 tsp garam masala

Korma Paste:

• 2 garlic cloves
• 2.5 cm (1 inch) fresh ginger root, coarsely chopped
• 50 g (1 3/4 oz / 1/3 cup) blanched almonds
• 6 tbsp chicken stock
• 1 tsp ground cardamom
• 4 cloves, crushed
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 1 tsp coriander seeds
• 2 tsp ground cumin seeds
• pinch cayenne
• 6 tbsp olive oil
• salt and pepper
• coriander, to garnish

Method:

• Place all the ingredients for the korma paste into a blender or food processor and blend together until a very smooth paste is formed.
• Place the cubes of chicken in a bowl and pour over the korma paste. Stir to coat the chicken completely with the paste. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 3 hours to allow the flavours to permeate the chicken.
• Simmer the meat in a large saucepan for 25 minutes, adding a little chicken stock if the mixture becomes too dry.
• Add the double cream and garam masala to the pan and simmer for a further 15 minutes. Allow the korma to stand for 10 minutes before serving. Garnish the chicken korma with fresh coriander and serve with basmati rice.

Bon appetite!

 

Going Indian III

When is hot outside, try this. If you are not living in a hot climate as Indians are, try this in cold weather and it will make you hot. And my guess is you will ask for more. It is a delicious recipe. So delicious that I tried it just once. Hahaha. I should try it several times as I like lamb and this is indeed something special. I have a déjà vu writing this. I also like the way it is constructed with all those ingredients, some of them rare and precious and full of flavour. What an exquisite aroma it spreads ! It whispers: come and taste me! And of course you come… Sit down at the table and enjoy it with naan bread (I miss naan bread sooo much) or basmati rice (Tilda brand – the best). I must cook this again. So, let’s see what I need, apart from Love and Understanding and Tenderness. And a beautiful and large kitchen where I will be the queen 😉 . I need … to add that the recipe is taken from a wonderful book, “Golden India – Indian Recipes” and the recipes is

Champ Masala

Lamb Chops in Spicy Marinade

Serves 4-6

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 1 hour 15 minutes

And the ingredients are:

• 1 kg lamb chops 
• 12 almonds, blanched
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• 2 2/3 tbsp (40 ml) butter or oil
• 1/2 tsp cardamom seeds
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2-3 cloves, whole
• 2 tsp coriander leaves, chopped
• 1 tbsp cumin seeds
• 2 tsp garlic paste
• 2 tsp ginger, chopped finely
• 2 red or green chillies, deseeded and sliced
• a few strands of saffron, dissolved in 1 tsp milk (optional)
• 2 onions, medium size, chopped
• salt to taste
• 2 tsp sesame seeds (til)
• 3/4 cup yoghurt (I always go with my fav, the greek full fat one)

Method:

• Blend cumin seeds, ginger, garlic paste, cardamom seeds, cloves, almonds, sesame seeds, cayenne pepper, sugar and 2 tbsp yoghurt to a purée, adding more yoghurt if the mixture is dry. Pour mixture into a bowl and set aside. You have now a masala paste.
• Melt butter/ oil in a large kadhai (wok) or pan. Add onions and fry till golden brown. Stir in the masala paste and fry for 5 minutes stirring constantly. Add a spoonful water at a time if the mixture becomes too dry. Add the lamb chops and fry 10 minutes on medium heat, turning chops frequently.
• Beat the remaining yoghurt and saffron together, pour it into the lamb and mix well. Bring to a boil the reduce heat to very low, simmer for 1/2 hour.
• Preheat oven to 150˚C/ 300˚F.
• Transfer chops into a casserole and put into the oven to cook for at least 25 minutes. After that you have a taste of India. 🙂

Bon appetite!