Amping up my meatloaf and Hassel(whatever) potatoes

minniemoh

I haven't made meatloaf in a while but since my first one a few months ago, I've been trying different ingredients and flavor combinations to see if I can improve on my recipe. We'll see how this one turns out.

two lbs of ground beef

one pound of italian sausage

two eggs (beaten)

half of a large onion finely chopped

one jalapeño pepper finely chopped

half an orange pepper finely chopped

half a yellow pepper finely chopped

half cup of chopped fresh mushrooms

1 tblspn of garlic (had to use the stuff from a jar as we were out of fresh)

4 strips of Neuske's bacon fried just shy of crispy

2 tablespoons PlowBoy's Bovine Bold (or your favorite beef seasoning)

Cooked the bacon in skillet then added the veggies to a little bit of bacon grease for a quick sauté (5-6 minutes). Then I added the garlic and squirted the entire mixture with about 1 tablespoon of Sriracha and sautéed for about 1 more minute.

Then I mixed the beef and Italian sausage by hand, added the veggies and crumbled bacon along with the two eggs (beaten).

and about 1 cup of crushed saltine crackers and mixed thoroughly.

packed into a lined loaf pan and then flipped it onto a grilling sheet and dusted with rub. Then I put in the freezer for half hour to keep solid and hope for a little more smoke penetration with it being colder when I put it on the egg. I also lit the egg at this time headed for 375.

Then I lit the Mini to get it up to 400 degrees and prepped the potatoes. This is my first run at these and I think I may have cut the slices a little thin. I cut them and brushed with melted butter, then seasoned with Spuds (from a local grocery chain - basically salt, garlic powder, onion powder, chives, parsley, and sage mixture). We use Spuds on chicken drumsticks with mesquite smoke and it's fantastic. 

theyolksonyou

Looking good

tulocay

Looks good

minniemoh

Well the Hasselback potatoes weren't quite done. The one my wife had was good but the other two were still "woody." The meatloaf, however, was amazing (if I do say so myself). I sauced it with a mix of Cookies BBQ sauce and sriracha and it had the perfect spice for my wife and I. I also really liked the addition of the mushrooms and the Bovine Bold seasoning. This was definitely my best one yet. It took just the right amount of smoke from the 3 oak chunks as well.

Here's the finished pics as well as a lame effort at a plated one. 

Brisket_Fanatic

Awesome!

TexanEgger

Looks good, minniemoh.  I'm getting ready to do my signature ML, but haven't done it on my BGE.  I think I'm going to give it a shot.  Thanks for the great idea!

minniemoh

@TexanEgger - the egg does wonderful things to meatloaf! One of the nicest compliments pertaining to a cook that I've ever gotten from anyone was from a 12 yr old daughter of a friend of mine. They stopped in and ended up staying for dinner. I had made meatloaf (not expecting guests) and she wrinkled her nose when she heard that. She put the first bite in her mouth and said "AMAZING!!!" Now when they are coming over, she always asks if I'm making it again. 

Good luck with yours. I'm sure it will be great. 

bvdw

nice work.. how long did the potatoes take at 400?

blind99

Glad this bumped up... I'm passing this recipe to my wife! Looks great!

minniemoh

@bvdw - For me, it seems they turn out better at 450-475 for just over an hour. The ones I did at 400 weren't cooked long enough. 

Thanks @blind99. I hope you like it.

Jeepster47

Thank you, thank you ... finally someone else fessed up that their hasslespuds didn't come out correct.  Damn things are the bane of my egging.

As to the plated picture ... looks good enough to sit down to ... that's what counts.  I think Steven and Matt and a couple of the others have a studio setup for their plated pictures.  By the time my food gets to the table, it's a wonder any pictures are taken.  I'm thinking of mounting a game camera above the table just to be sure to catch a plated picture or two.

theyolksonyou

I still haven't tried taters this way, need to remedy that.

minniemoh

@Jeepster47 - I think many will microwave at the start or finish for a few minutes and that's how they get them done. We don't have a working microwave (hasn't worked since August and we don't miss it) so I can't take that shortcut. 

Thanks for the compliments.