INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup onion, chopped
½ cup green bell pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
11/2 lbs. lean ground beef
1/3 cup dried breadcrumbs
2 teaspoons dried italian seasoning
2 tablespoon ketchup
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
1 egg
¼ cup grated cheese* (optional)
cooking spray
Sauce
½ cup ketchup
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon mustard
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell pepper and garlic and sauté for 2 minutes. Let cool.
In a large bowl combine, ground beef, onions, bell pepper, garlic and remaining ingredients and mix well. Transfer to 9 x 5 loaf pan coated with cooking spray.
Bake for approximately 45 minutes. In a small bowl mix sauce ingredients together. Add sauce over meat and continue to
bake for an additional 5 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand for 10 minutes.
*Feel free to use any type of cheese you like. As a suggestion, sharp cheddar, parmesan, romano and smoked cheeses work quite well with this meat loaf recipe. Since Chef Jay invited me to his home and we are both passionate about european foods and cooking as well, I decided to use one of my favorites, the manchego cheese. Manchego cheese is a spanish cheese made in the La Mancha region of Spain from the whole milk of sheep. The cheese is firm in texture, well developed and has a lovely distinctive flavor. It’s great to eat and pairs very well with a robust red wine or sherry.
