Spicing Up the Meatloaf, Latin Style

I like meatloaf. A lot. Its one of the best and most satisfying comfort foods imaginable. But even the traditional meatloaf recipe can sometimes use a bit of a sprucing up, especially if you're into bold flavors, like myself.

Tonight I made a meatloaf with Puerto Rican-style seasonings, inspired by the cooking of Daisy Martinez and her PBS show, Daisy Cooks! I like Daisy a lot, her show is really educational and she's doing a lot to promote Latin American and Puerto Rican cuisine in the US and on public television.

For the meat, I used a proportion of half ground beef to one quarter each ground pork and ground veal. The filler/vegetal component is carrot, onion, celery and garlic, blitzed in the food processor into a very fine chop. I then sauteed the veggie mixture in achiote oil along with some recaito. To this I added some Goya Adobo with Cumin and added salt and pepper to taste. I allowed the seasoned vegetable mixture to cool down, and then incorporated it into the ground meat, along with a slice of white bread sogged down with milk, a dollop each of dijon mustard and ketchup, several shots of Tabasco Chipotle Pepper Sauce and a hit of Maggi Seasoning.

Let me tell you, the result was anything but boring.

For more meatloaf, check out the Meatloaf Madness on Eating for One