Meatloaf Roll Spiraled with Greens

This is a recipe from Greens, Glorious Greens caught my attention early on. The title was Uncle Eddie’s Spiral Meatloaf with Mixed Greens. According to the introduction, Uncle Eddie had been an army cook. My Uncle Eddie was a Navy cook. We loved him dearly. It is a strange connect, but I just had to make this recipe and we are all glad I did.

The flavor is satisfying and the recipe is visually stunning. For not taking any more time than it did, this meatloaf rates as fine company fare. Except for doubling the recipe, I followed it pretty closely. In the final analysis I thought it needed more glaze. Oh, that glaze! This rendition of the recipe takes added glaze into the final draft.

Meatloaf Roll Ingredients

• 4 cups water
• 4 cups kale, washed and stemmed
• 4 cups spinach, washed
• 3 pounds ground beef
• 1 finely minced onion
• 3 minced garlic cloves
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup

Meatloaf Roll Steps

1. Bring the water to a boil. Toss in the kale and spinach. Cook for two minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the greens to a colander to drain.
2. Squeeze out any possible water then chop the cooked greens. Set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl combine the ground beef, onion, garlic, salt, pepper and bread crumbs. Use your hands to work the meat mixture into a sticky mass.
4. Oil a 9 by 13 inch glass baking dish.
5. Spread out a piece of baking parchment on the counter top. Place the meat mixture on the paper. Pat it out into a rectangle about 12 by 10.
6. Spread the cooked greens over the rectangle.
7. Lifting the parchment to help roll the meat, roll it jelly-roll style starting with the 12 inch edge. This is easier than you would expect.
8. Place the roll in the oiled baking dish with the seam side down.
9. Mix the mustard and maple syrup in a cup.
10. With a pastry brush, coat the meal roll with this mustard maple glaze.
11. Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour.
12. Allow 15 minutes for the meat roll to cool and settle into shape before cutting in one-inch slices to serve.

An option is to make a gravy with the drippings from the baking pan to serve over the meat. This is an especially good idea if your meat is lean and dry.