Brazilian Meatloaf

The credit for this recipe goes to the mum of my friend, Julio. I find that children look at it suspiciously, poke it around a bit with their forks, and after being persuaded to take a first bite, usually ask for seconds.

The first time we had this at Julio and Dani's house, the dish was accompanied by a really lovely cauliflower cheese - I don't know how he managed it, but Julio managed to wrap ham and cheese in and around the cauliflower, then take it out of the oven still looking like a whole cauliflower. It was a really lovely meal, and a really lovely day. I miss you guys!

I haven't made this for a while, but we had the school nativity on Friday, and some of the children's friends (and their mums, my friends!) came over after school. We haven't done it for a while, I think maybe once, since I started working full time in 2012, but it reminded me how much I miss doing it. Maybe early Friday leaving every so often could be a habit to adopt.

 

Ingredients

• 400g beef mince
• 1 packet (single portion) of powdered onion soup (use vegetable if you can't find onion)
• 1 egg
• 50g butter cut into cubes, preferably at room temperature (but don't stress if you forgot to take it out of the fridge, like me)
• 6-8 slices of thin ham
• A large handful of grated cheddar cheese
• Ground black pepper to season

Serves 3-4 adults or 6 children

 

Instructions

• If your packet soup mix contains croutons, pour it through a sieve, remove the croutons and add any dried vegetables back into the mix
• Place the beef mince, butter, egg, soup mix and ground black pepper in a large bowl and combine well. I get stuck in with my hands
• Lay a length of clingfilm onto a flat surface - about the size of a normal baking tray
• Place the beef mince mixture onto the clingfilm and roll/flatten with a rolling pin or your hands, until the mixture is 5-8mm thick. Aim for a rectangle shape
• Lay a single layer of sliced ham over the mince, then sprinkle a layer of grated cheese over that

• Using the clingfilm, roll the mince over, so that you a long, rather unsavoury looking roll of meat, wrapped in the clingfilm. Flatten slightly with your hand and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to firm up

The less said, the better really!

• When you are ready to cook the meatloaf, remove the clingfilm and place on a baking tray. Place into an oven at 180 degrees fan for 25-30 minutes

• Remove from the oven, cut into slices around 2cm thick and serve. I like to serve with rice and assorted vegetables

Brazilian Meatloaf