I’m growing lots of kale and spinach in my garden so I’m always looking for ways to add it to things. This recipe is a pretty traditional meatloaf with greens added. This would work great with any kind of greens. You can always use just one kind of green, or add a mix, as long as you let the tougher ones sauté for a couple minutes before making your loaf.
We had just thrown a BBQ and my neighbor had brought over her homemade catsup, so I was able to use that instead of boring old grocery store catsup. It really added something special.
Ingredients:
3 pieces bacon, diced
2 carrots diced
2 stalks celery diced
1 onion diced
4 cloves garlic
4-6 kale leaved, stems removed and chopped
6-8 large spinach leaves or about 1 cup uncooked
6-8 springs parsley, chopped
1 lb ground beef
1 cup breadcrumbs
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 Tbsp each mustard, catsup, and worchestershire sauce
Salt and pepper
Sauté bacon, carrot, onion, and celery until just tender. Add kale and garlic and sauté until kale is tender. Add spinach just until it wilts. Transfer to a large bowl and add ground beef, eggs, parsley, bread crumbs, and seasoning. Mix well. Put this in a loaf pan, I usually use pyrex, and shape into a loaf. You can add a little catsup on top. Cover with foil and cook for 1 hour at 375. About ten minutes before the hour is up, remove the foil so the top has a chance to brown.
This makes a tender loaf that falls apart easily so it’s a big hard to get out of the pan in one piece, I think that just makes it more delicious.
You can prepare this well in advance of dinner and just pop it in the oven an hour or so before dinner time. Remember, if you refrigerate Pyrex, you should put it in the oven before preheating it, so the glass doesn’t shatter with the sudden temperature change.