Italian Meatloaf and Spaghetti Squash

Hello fellow home cooks,

I hope you are all doing well. It’s been a few weeks since I posted on the blog, my family has been passing around a nasty stomach bug and cold, so I have had little energy to do anything outside of making a lot of soup, tea and taking care of everyone. I was so happy that we had been getting through the winter without the whole family coming down with something and then BOOM, it hit us all, one right after the other. So, lessoned learned, don’t ever think you’ve escaped sickness, because it will hunt you down and make you miserable! 😛

Back to why I am blogging today, so the meatloaf recipe is actually my Dad’s recipe,it is THE BEST meatloaf in my opinion, and it pairs excellent with spaghetti squash or regular pasta if you prefer. I’ve included instructions for preparing spaghetti squash because I’ve had a lot of friends asking me how to prepare it. I hope your family enjoys it as much as mine does!

~Brooke

Ingredients:

extra-virgin olive oil
4 teaspoons (about 6 cloves) chopped garlic
1/2 cup of chopped white onion
1/2 cup chopped basil leaves
1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning
3 eggs
salt
black pepper
2 cups grated Parmesan
2 cups of grated mozzarella
1 1/2 cups breadcrumbs
3 pounds ground beef
1 pound of sweet Italian sausage
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 cups of red wine or cooking wine
3 cans of stewed tomatoes, Italian style
1 large spaghetti squash

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine the ground beef and Italian sausage, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, eggs, 1 cup of Parmesan and the breadcrumbs, the Worcestershire, chopped white onion, 2 teaspoons of garlic, 1 cup of wine, and 2 tablespoons olive oil together in a large bowl using your hands, making sure not to overmix. Pack the meat mixture into an oiled loaf pan, if you do not have a loaf pan, form the meat mixture into a loaf shape on an oiled oven tray or baking dish.

Next, to prepare the squash, cut it in half and scrape out the seeds, place on a foil lined cookie and rub about 1 teaspoon of olive oil on the inside of each half, sprinkle with sea salt and pepper.

Place both the squash and meatloaf in the oven. Roast the squash for about 35-50 minutes depending on how firm you still want it. Bake the meatloaf for approximately 45-50 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer registers 160 degrees F in the middle of the meatloaf.

Well the squash and meatloaf are cooking, prepare the marinara. Start by pureeing the 3 cans of stewed tomatoes in a food processor until smooth. Heat 2 teaspoons of olive oil in a medium sauce pan, add remaining garlic. Sauté until aromatic, then add the pureed tomatoes, a sprinkling of salt and remaining cup of wine. Bring to a boil then turn heat on medium low. Simmer for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When the squash and meatloaf are done cooking, remove from the oven. Top the meatloaf with a cup of the marinara sauce, the remaining parmesan and the mozzarella, place under the broiler until the cheese begins to bubble. Remove from the oven and let it rest for 5 minutes. Using a fork, scrape the flesh from the squash to create long strands. Slice and serve the meatloaf, topping it and the spaghetti squash with the marinara and fresh chopped basil.

Buon Appetito!