Best Middle East Lamb Meatloaf From The New York Times Magazine Of February Recipes

MIDDLE EASTERN MEAT LOAF

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
• In a bowl, thoroughly combine the ground beef and the lamb. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs. Stir in the milk and oats. Pour into the meats. Mix thoroughly.
• Add all other ingredients except melted butter. Mix well.
• Shape mixture into an oval loaf and place in a roasting pan. Drizzle with melted butter and bake for 1 hour. Serve with sauce.
• In a skillet, heat the butter. Add the onions, green pepper and bay leaf and saute until onion is translucent and limp, about 5 to 10 minutes.
• Add the remaining ingredients, except tomato paste and parsley, breaking the tomatoes into small pieces as you add them. Simmer for 30 minutes, or until sauce begins to thicken.
• Add the tomato paste and stir well. Cook 15 minutes. Add the parsley, stir well. Serve over Middle Eastern Meat Loaf.

YOTAM OTTOLENGHI'S JERUSALEM LAMB SHAWARMA

Steps:

• Put the peppercorns, cloves, cardamom, fenugreek, fennel, cumin, star anise and cinnamon in a cast-iron pan set over medium-high heat and dry-roast them for a minute or two, until the spices begin to pop and release their aromas. Take care not to burn them. Add the nutmeg, ground ginger and paprika, and toss for a few more seconds, just to heat them, then transfer to a spice grinder. Process the spices into powder. Transfer to a medium bowl, and stir in the sumac, salt, fresh ginger, garlic, cilantro, lemon juice and oil, and stir to combine.
• Use a small sharp knife to score the leg of lamb in a few places, making half-inch-deep slits through the fat and meat. Put the lamb in a large roasting pan and rub the marinade all over it, using your hands to massage the meat. Turn the lamb fat-side up, cover the pan with aluminum foil and place it aside on a countertop for at least a couple of hours, or preferably, rest it overnight in the refrigerator.
• Heat oven to 350. Remove the aluminum foil, and place the lamb in the oven. Roast for approximately 4 1/2 hours, or until the meat is completely tender. After 30 minutes of roasting, add about a cup of boiling water to the pan, and use this liquid to baste the meat every hour or so. (Add more water, as needed, making sure there is always a little in the bottom of the pan.) After 90 minutes or so, cover the lamb with aluminum foil to prevent the spices from burning. Once the lamb is done, remove it from the oven, and leave to rest for 10 to 15 minutes before carving and serving.

MEATLOAF

Steps:

• Make the meatloaf: Heat oven to 350 degrees and grease a rimmed baking sheet with oil. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a medium skillet over medium. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in tomato paste until well combined; let cool.
• In a large bowl, combine bread and milk, and mash with a spoon until a paste forms. Add eggs, parsley, salt, pepper, thyme and cooled onion mixture and mix until well blended. Add the beef, pork and veal, and mix gently to combine, being careful not to overwork the meat. Divide mixture into 2 equal portions and shape each into a 4-by-8-inch meatloaf on the prepared baking sheet.
• Make the glaze: In a small bowl, whisk together ketchup and Worcestershire sauce until smooth. Use a spoon to spread mixture over the top and sides of each meatloaf. Bake until nicely browned and an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center of meatloaf registers 160 degrees, 45 to 55 minutes. Let rest for 15 minutes before slicing.

MEATLOAF

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place a skillet over medium heat, and melt butter. Add onion and salt to taste, and sauté until golden brown. Remove from heat, and set aside.
• In a mixing bowl, combine beef, pork, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, mustard, cracker crumbs and 1/4 cup applesauce. Add onion, and mix well. Gently press into a loaf pan 9 inches by 5 inches by 3 inches, and smooth top. Spread top with remaining 3 tablespoons applesauce, and lay bacon slices lengthwise over top. Sprinkle generously with black pepper.
• Bake until well browned on top and no longer pink in center, about 1 hour. Remove from oven, and carefully pour out juices that have accumulated in pan. Allow to sit for 5 to 10 minutes before removing from pan and slicing.

MEATLOAF WITH MOROCCAN SPICES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat, then add the onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir for another minute or two. Add the celery, carrots and ginger, and cook for about 5 minutes, adding more olive oil as needed to make sure ingredients are well coated and softening.
• Add the spices: cumin, smoked paprika, coriander, cinnamon and salt, stirring well to mix. (You can alter spices to your liking, with more or less of those recommended or adding curry powder, nutmeg, allspice, black or cayenne pepper.) Add the tomato paste and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring well and scraping the bottom of the pan with a spatula to ensure the spices don't burn. Once mixture is cooked, remove pan from heat and let cool for about 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, combine in a large bowl the fresh herbs (cilantro, mint and parsley) and the eggs and bread crumbs. Add the ground lamb and the cooled mixture. Mix well with clean hands, until all ingredients are blended.
• Place the mixture into a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan and cover with aluminum foil. Create a water bath by placing the loaf pan into a larger baking pan and filling the larger pan halfway with lukewarm water. (This helps keep the meatloaf moist by keeping the temperature more even during baking.)
• Put the meatloaf, in the bath, into the oven and cook for about 1 hour 30 minutes. After an hour, check the meatloaf, and remove the foil if you would like a firmer top. Bake until internal temperature reaches 140 degrees. (This is a good time to toast the pine nuts if you're making the sauce.)
• Remove pans from the oven, lift the loaf pan out of the water bath, and let the meatloaf cool for at least 5 minutes. If there is excessive grease, carefully pour that out and discard it. Serve warm, at room temperature, or cooled, depending on your taste.
• If you're making the sauce, mix the yogurt, lemon juice and pine nuts together with a spoon, and serve in a small dish on the side.

BASIC MEATLOAF

Steps:

• Place a rack in the center of the oven, and heat to 350 degrees.
• Put onion, carrot, garlic and celery in the bowl of a food processor, and pulse until the vegetables are chopped medium fine; there should be about 1 2/3 cups of chopped vegetables.
• Combine all of the ingredients, reserving 4 tablespoons of the ketchup.
• Add optional ingredients, if desired. Divide the mixture into 4 equal parts. Form into mounded ovals that do not touch in a 9-by-13-inch heatproof glass baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes. Spread 1 tablespoon of ketchup over the top of each loaf, and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven, and let rest for 5 minutes. Using a pancake turner, remove each loaf and serve on individual plates.

MIDDLE EAST LAMB MEATLOAF - FROM THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE OF FEBRUARY 3, 1991

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425° degrees.
• In a bowl, combine ground beef, and lamb.
• In a separate bowl, beat eggs, Stir in the milk and oats.
• Pour into the meats.
• Mix thoroughly.
• Add all other ingredients except clarified butter.
• Mix well.
• (use your hands).
• Shape mixture into an oval loaf and place in a roasting pan.
• Drizzle with clarified butter and bake for 1 hour.
• Serve drizzled with sauce.
• SAUCE DIRECTIONS------------.
• In a skillet, heat butter (olive oil).
• Add onions, green pepper, and bay leaf and sauté until the onion is translucent and limp, about 5-10 minutes.
• Add the remaining ingredients, except tomato paste and parsley, breaking the tomatoes into small pieces as you add them.
• Simmer for 30 minutes, or until sauce begins to thicken.
• Add the tomatoes paste and stir well.
• Cook 15 minutes.
• Add the parsley, stir well.
• Serve over the Meat Loaf.