Politiko Meatloaf

Politiko Meatloaf

After the birth of our second son, I have decided not only to go back to the Doctor Daniels diet to lose my post preggo pounds but to get my family to eat less meat and more vegetable based meals. To introduce more vegetables into our diet I've been making meat based dishes on alternate days. Not only is this allowing me to trim down my waist but also on my grocery bill. With that said and with being a cave woman down to the very blood of me, I cannot go without a good dose of meat in my diet every now and then. Thus, the creation of Politiko Meatloaf was created on Thursday. In the beginning the ground meat mixture I made was going to be used to make Keftedes - Greek Meatballs. However, my husband was not very excited with the prospect of eating meatballs for a second time that day. You see, I packed meatballs and pasta for his lunch. Of course the poor man didn't want to eat the same dish twice even though the meatballs he had for lunch were Italian meatballs and I was going to make Greek meatballs. To men one meatball is the same as the next meatball, so with that in mind I decided to get a little creative with my ground meat mixture. Instead of crafting the ground meat into golf ball size meatballs and frying them in a pan, I rolled the ground meat mixture into a log type shape and stuffed into a loaf dish and voila - the Politiko Meatloaf was created.

2 lbs ground meat

1 eggs

2 cups bread crumbs

1 large onions. minced

1/2 cup fresh parley, chopped

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 tbsp cumin

1 tbsp mint

1 tbsp oregano

1 tsp cinnamon

salt

pepper

1 jar Classico Spinach & Cheese Sauce

* You can make your own Marinara Sauce

Kokkinisto - Red Sauce

3 cups tomato sauce

1 onion, diced

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp mint

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp balsamic vinegar

salt

pepper

1. Place all the ingredients into a large mixing bowl and combine well.

2. Preheat oven to 450F.

3. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper. Roll the ground meat mixture into a log shape and place it into the loaf pan.

4. Spoon on 1/4 of the Spinach & Cheese Sauce on top of the loaf. Cook the loaf for 35 minutes.

5. After 35 minutes check that the loaf has cooked all the way through the middle by poking the loaf with a skewer or knife. Reduce heat to 425F. Add 3 tbsp of the Spinach & Cheese Sauce on top and continue cooking for another 15 minutes.

6. Serve on a bed of pilaf.

Spanakorizo me Kritharaki - Spinach with Orzo

Spanakorizo me Kritharaki - Spinach with Orzo

Spanakorizo is a traditional Greek vegetarian dish popular during Lent because the spinach is a good source of iron and the rice makes a hearty dinner option when you don't have meat in your bowl. Usually Spanakorizo is made with rice, however in different regions of Greece other grains have been used as well such as Bulgar wheat, barley or kritharaki (orzo pasta). Last week was the first week that I started cooking differently for the family mostly because I've put myself on a post pregnancy diet and partly because I want to introduce more vegetarian based meals into our eating schedule for all around better health. Thus our eating schedule is as follows; Monday, Wednesday and Friday I make vegetarian dishes and Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday I make something with meat. Saturdays is our leftover day. The dish that I am sharing with you today is from our Wednesday night dinner.

1 bunch of baby spinach, chopped

1 bunch of green onions, chopped

1 tbsp minced garlic

salt

pepper

1/2 tbsp mint

2 cups of tomato pulp

2 cups of chicken stock (vegetable stock)

1/4 cup orzo pasta

1. In a medium size stock pot saute the green onion for 2 to 3 minutes.

2. Add the spinach and cover to allow the spinach to wilt.

3. Stir in the minced garlic, salt, pepper and mint. Saute together for 3 minutes.

4. Stir in the tomato pulp and chicken stock. Bring to a boil. Add the orzo pasta. Cook for 30 minutes on medium/low heat.

5. Serve with crusty bread.