Sometimes going to the Past, brings us to the Future

MEATLOAF - A True Comfort Food Classic

We are always looking for new exciting recipes to try...and sometimes we can find them by going backwards... to old school classics. Back east in the sixties meatloaf was a weekly tradition. My Mom would even pack up meatloaf sandwiches to take to Yankee Stadium to watch a doubleheader...Unfortunately there are no more of those - doubleheaders or being able to take meatloaf sandwiches into a ballpark, but that's another story.

Many of us have issues with ground wild game meats. The trouble is from the excessive amount of blood that is present after the grinding process. Unlike whole cuts of meat that need to be dry aged over long periods of time to remove the capillary blood. Ground wild game meat can achieve the removal of this blood rather quickly. Place the defrosted ground meat in a colander that is placed in a bowl and covered this with plastic wrap. Place this in the refrigerator overnight. The next day you will be amazed by the amount of motor oil thick blood sitting in the bottom of the bowl. It's this excess liquid that gives your ground meat a gamey and mushy texture and causes your meatloaf and burgers to fall apart.

You will find your ground meat to be very mild in flavor and MUCH easier to incorporate into any recipe that calls for ground meat. This is a perfect example of addition by subtraction. You have just improved your entire catalogue of wild game recipes. You may want to add this one below to that list.

 

CHILI SPIKED VENISON MEATLOAF with roasted sweet potatoes

serves 8 – 10

 4 lbs. Ground venison (or elk, moose, caribou, sheep. Etc) drained of excess blood

(or you can do half venison and half ground pork)

6 eggs

1-½ cups dried breadcrumbs

½ cup ketchup

1 ½ cups onions, diced fine

½ cup celery, diced fine

1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

6 tbsp. Wildeats BURGER DUST 

Salt and pepper to taste

 Chile Glaze

½ cup ketchup

1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

3 tbsp. WildEats - Controlled Burn Chili Blend

3 tbsp. Virgin olive Oil

 Sweet Potatoes

6 med. sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 ½ inch cubes

2 tbsp. olive oil or 2 tbsp., melted butter

salt and pepper to taste

 Combine all the ingredients for the loaf as quickly as possible. Excess heat from your hands will affect the blending process. Form into a loaf shape. Place into a proper roasting pan, a loaf pan or a pyrex baking dish that has been sprayed with pan spray. This makes for an easy clean up.

 Blend the ingredients for the Chile Glaze.

Baste the top of the loaf with the Chile Glaze.

Toss the peeled sweet potatoes with olive oil and season.

Arrange them around the loaf, or in another roasting pan.

 Place into a 365° F oven for Apr. 80-90 minutes. Or until 160ºF internal temperature

 Allow to rest for ten minutes before cutting…

 This is a great comfort food and a great way of utilizing trim and other cuts like, neck, shank, shoulder etc. The combination of the full-flavored meat with the mild spicy flavor of the glaze and the sweetness of the potatoes makes for a great meal.

You'll want to be sure to make some extra so you can try and sneak a few sandwiches into the next ballgame you go to. IYKYK