Tyler Florence's Meatloaf

 

Ingredients

• 1 onion, finely diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 red bell peppers, cored, seeded and finely diced
• 2 tomatoes, halved, seeded and finely diced
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 (12-ounce) bottle ketchup
• 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
• kosher salst and freshly ground black pepper
• extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 pound ground pork
• 3 eggs
• leaves from 2 fresh thyme sprigs
• 3 slices white bread, crusts removed and torn into pieces
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Coat a skillet with a 2-count of oil and place over medium heat. Saute the onion, garlic and bay leaves for a few minutes to a base flavor. Throw in the red peppers and cook them for a couple of minutes to soften. Now add the tomatoes; adding them at this point lets them hold their shape and prevents them from disintegrating. Stir in the parsley, ketchup and Worcestershire; season with salt and pepper. Simmer the relish for 10 minutes to pull all the flavors together. Remove it from the heat; you should have about 4 cups of relish.

In a large mixing bowl soak the bread pieces in the whole milk. Set aside. In a separate large mixing bowl, combine the ground beef with the ground pork and mix well. Squeeze out the milk from the bread and add the bread to mixing bowl. Add the eggs, 1 cup of the tomato relish, and thyme; season with salt and pepper. Mix well with hands. To test, fry a small "hamburger" patty of the meatloaf until cooked; the patty should hold together but still have a soft consistency. Taste the patty for seasoning.

Take a small baking tray and line with parchment paper. Form the meat into a loaf shape on the tray and top with another 1/2 cup of the tomato relish.

Bake the meatloaf for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until the juices run clear and meat is tender -- it should spring back lightly when pressed. Remove the meatloaf from the oven and let it cool a bit before slicing. Serve with the remaining tomato relish on the side.