Neapolitan meatloaf

COOK'S NOTES ON NEAPOLITAN MEAT LOAF
True Neapolitan cuisine uses cheap but nutritious ingredients. Although meat is not often used, when it is the cheaper cuts of meat are the most authentic. Experiment with the meat used, from all beef, half veal and half beef, minced offal, they all make a good Neapolitan meat loaf.

If you have no stale bread then take two slices of fresh bread before doing anything else and very lightly toast it for 30 seconds. Break it into small pieces and leave to one side whilst preparing the other ingredients. It will very quickly harden to "stale" bread.

Our recipe uses a meat loaf or bread tin. This helps to keep the meat loaf in a nice oblong shape. Bit if you don't have a meatloaf tin then simply place the meatloaf mixture onto a baking tray lined with baking paper. The meat loaf will give off a lot of liquid during cooking so be sure to use a baking tray which is a couple of centimetres deep to catch the liquid.

This recipe uses six hard boiled eggs but it can also be cooked with four hard boiled eggs. If using six eggs then we top and tail the eggs so that some of the just white portion is removed. Doing it this way means that almost every slice will have a portion of the hard boiled yolk in it! It looks good that way and saves arguments about who gets the portions with the hard boiled yolk in it.

Meat loaf can be frozen either uncooked or cooked. Just make sure that cooked meatloaf is completely cool before freezing it.

This recipe is delicious served hot or cold. If served hot the flavour is enhanced by smothering it in a very simple tomato sauce. It is delicious served cold with a salad or on a piece of toast.

Cold Neapolitan meat loaf can be spiced up with a spicy salsa and also makes an ideal tapa when cubed and served on a cocktail stick. It will keep in the fridge (cooked) for a day or so. But take it out of the fridge for half an hour before serving to bring it to room temperature; serving at room temperature will greatly improve the flavour.


Ingredients

Minced pork 400g / 14oz
Minced beef 400g / 14oz
Red sweet pepper one half
Celery sticks Two
Parmesan cheese 150g / 5oz
Stale bread without crust Two slices
Milk Half a glass
Fresh parsley chopped Three tablespoons (half if using dried)
Raw medium eggs Two
Hard boiled medium eggs Six
Streaky bacon Six slices
Olive oil One tablespoon
Fresh chopped basil One tablespoon or ½ tablespoon dried
Fresh chopped oregano One tablespoon or ½ tablespoon dried
Salt and pepper To taste

PREPARATION
For the hard boiled eggs, cook them in boiling water for ten minutes then remove the shells. Plunging the cooked eggs into very cold water for a minute or so will make it easier to shell them.
Top and tail some of the "white" from each hard boiled egg when they have cooled. See cook's notes above for our comments.
Line the baking tray with oven proof paper.
Finely chop the celery and sweet red pepper (de-seed first).
Finely chop the parsley.
Finely chop the fresh basil and oregano.
Grate the parmesan cheese.
Break up the stale bread into small pieces. Soak in milk for 15 seconds.
Lightly break up the raw eggs.
Preheat the oven to 170°C / 325°F / Gas Mark 3.

METHOD FOR NEAPOLITAN MEAT LOAF

Place the minced beef, minced pork, sweet pepper, celery, parsley, Parmesan cheese and raw eggs into a large bowl and mix together for a few minutes until all the ingredients are evenly distributed.
Add the bread pieces, olive oil, basil, oregano, salt and pepper and mix again with your hands for a further minute or so.


Place about 3cm / 1in of the meat loaf mixture into the meat loaf tin / baking tray and then add the hard boiled eggs on top in a row.
Fill around the edges with the meat loaf mixture and then place the remainder evenly on the top. Gently firm it all down. Place in the pre-heated oven for one hour.

Remove the Neapolitan meatloaf from the oven and carefully pour away any of the fat.
Place the rashers of streaky bacon evenly on top of the meatloaf and place back in the oven at the same temperature for 30 minutes. The bacon will stop the top of the meatloaf from drying out.

Take the meatloaf from the oven and again carefully drain off any remaining fat. Place under a hot grill for a minute or so until the streaky bacon has crisped up.

Leave it stand for 15 minutes. If you want to eat it cool then leave it to stand for an hour. It can be kept in the fridge for a day or so but take it from the fridge and keep at room temperature for 30 minutes before serving.