CREOLE MEATLOAF WITH TRINITY GRAVY

The lovely Kim from Stirring the Pot posted this tasty-looking dish a few weeks back and I immediately put it in the queue to try. I decided to halve the recipe since the queue was getting crowded and I didn't want a lot of leftovers. I also made a few changes based on what I had on hand in the pantry and our own preferences, so the recipe below represents both Kim's and my tinkering with RR's original. Please check out Stirring the Pot for the original recipe and much, much more.

Creole Meat Loaves with Trinity Gravy

Adapted from Rachel Ray's Look + Cook

Serves 2 with leftovers

1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks 

Salt

1/2 cup buttermilk (milk with a tbs white vinegar does the trick)

1 tablespoon EVOO, plus more for drizzling

1 small yellow onion, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped 

1 1/4 pound ground pork

1/2 tablespoon sweet paprika

1 tsp ground thyme leaves 

Black Pepper

2 tbs grainy mustard

1/3 cup bread crumbs

1 egg

1 tbs butter

1 celery stalks, chopped

1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 tablespoons ketchup

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

3/4 cup chicken stock

 hot sauce (DSO added his after the fact; I don't eat it)

3 scallions, sliced on the bias, for garnish

For the Potatoes:

Cover the potatoes with water in a medium pot and bring to a boil, then season with alt and cook for 12-15 minutes until tender.  When the potatoes are ready, drain and return them to the hot pot and mash with the buttermilk to the desire consistency.  

For the Meat Loaves:

Preheat the oven to 375F.  Heat the tablespoon of EVOO in a medium skillet over medium heat, add one quarter of the onions and half of the garlic to the skillet, and cook to soften, 5-6 minutes.  Transfer the mixture to a bowl and cool.  To the cooled onion mixture add the pork, paprika, thyme, salt and pepper to taste, mustard, bread crumbs, and egg.  Mix to combine and for four 2-inch-thick loaves.  Arrange on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet and drizzle liberally with EVOO and Cajun seasoning (my add-in), then roast for 35-40 minutes until firm and golden.

For the Trinity Gravy:

To the same skillet add the butter and when it has melted, add the remaining onions and garlic, the celery, bell pepper, and salt and pepper to taste.  Cook to soften, 5-6 minutes.  Add the tomato paste and stir for 1 minute.  Sprinkle the flour (and Cajun seasoning if using) over the mixture and stir for another minute.  Stir in the stock, then the hot sauce, and cook to thicken over medium-low heat for a couple of minutes.  Turn the heat to the lowest setting to keep the gravy warm.  

To Serve:

Slice the meat loaves.  Arrange the sliced loaves alongside the buttermilk potatoes and pour the trinity gravy over both.  Garnish with the scallions and serve.
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TASTE NOTES
DSO and I both enjoy meatloaf and I've tried quite a variety of recipes this past year. This was the first made entirely of pork and we both enjoyed it. While the sweet potatoes were delicious, we both agreed that the tasty trinity gravy would be much better on rice. The gravy was so easy to prepare and the combination of onion-pepper-garlic (I'm guessing that's the trinity) was enhanced by the ketchup and celery. It was a pleasing color and consistency and I look forward to making this dish again with the aforementioned rice. Thanks Kim for another winning dish.