I spent much of this week contemplating recipes for persimmons, a fruit I only first had last Monday, even going so far as a failed chutney attempt. While coming up empty on good persimmon ideas, I was inspired by our friend Tracy who put out a call for meatloaf recipes. It’s been years since I last made meatloaf, and with Jen and I both furiously working on finishing the school quarter, it seemed like a perfect comfort dish that would also yield a meal or two of leftovers. This week could have gone either of two directions, pork or beef, as I use both in equal proportions. I chose pork because I’m still hoping to showcase my burger skills before the year is out.
I picked up a half pound each of Llano Seco organic pork and Five Dot Ranch beef, both freshly ground by the Davis Co-Op.
![Beef to the Left, Pork to the Right](http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7020/6450969025_03f75a7a65.jpg)
I put the ground meat in a bowl and added about a cup of finely chopped onion, a chopped garlic clove and two ribs of celery.
![Onion, Garlic and Celery](http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7172/6450969949_ee4c47a41d.jpg)
Next I added a bunch of bread crumbs and an egg.
![Breadcrumbs and Egg](http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7159/6450971371_c153e5619f.jpg)
Finally, I spiced it with a teaspoon and a half of salt, a tablespoon of dijon mustard and ground black pepper all over the top.
![Salt, Pepper and Dijon](http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7173/6450972711_3f87a7d55b.jpg)
Next came the fun part, getting into the bowl wrist deep and mixing it all together.
![Playing with My Food](http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7167/6450974383_cb48061e39.jpg)
When it was all mixed together, I filled a loaf pan and covered it with foil. I placed it in an oven at 350° F for 30 minutes, after which I removed the foil and continued cooking it at 400° F; for another 30 minutes, until it had reached an internal temperature of 160° F.
We sliced it up and enjoyed it with baked potatoes. This meatloaf is super easy to make, and has a great meatloaf taste—lots of umami, just like meatloaf should be.
![Firsts!](http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7033/6450978245_d3bb4e230a.jpg)
Photos here.