Kitchen Call: Meatloaf ideal for leftover lovers

So many people hate leftovers. I know people who leave the room, decide to work late at the office or call for carry-out at the mere suggestion that leftovers might be on the menu for dinner. But many cooks view leftovers as a challenge. They relish transforming Tuesday's dinner into something totally unique for Wednesday.
Or on a practical level, leftovers can just be tomorrow's lunch.
My favorite leftover is meatloaf. I make two -- the first for dinner, the second for leftovers. Sometimes I can't wait, and as soon as it cools I'll tuck a slab of cold meatloaf between two slices of thickly buttered country-style bread, before it officially qualifies as a leftover.
As an official leftover, I might fry up slices, plop them on toasted English muffins and top with a poached egg. When an egg is poached just right -- a little runny in the center -- it makes a beautiful sauce for the meatloaf and muffin. An earthier version of Eggs Benedict. If I really want to transform it, I buy some buratta, small handmade mozzarella with a creamy center, and use that in place of the egg. Burrata must be served at room temperature so the thick cream pours out like a sauce.
Meatloaf with burrata tastes better with a slice of ciabatta or garlic bread in place of the English muffin.
Lately I've started playing with a new recipe passed along to me. The main ingredients are sausage and mashed potato. A good start. As a main course, I think it might taste good with a big salad of fresh, crunchy vegetables. It could even shake up brunch paired with a citrus-y fruit salad to cut the richness of the meat-and-potato mixture.
Hints:
Use good-quality, lean sausage, not bulk sausage meat. Choose your favorite uncooked sausages (never one like peperoni or linguica or chorizo) and take off the casings for this recipe.
Use russet or Idaho potatoes with low water content. (By the way an "Idaho" is always a russet, but not all russets grow in Idaho.) Bake the potatoes first to keep the meatloaf from turning watery.
MARION CUNINGHAM'S AMERICAN MEAT LOAF: A GOOD START
Makes 6 servings
Many years ago, cookbook author Marion Cunningham wrote down her take on the essential American meatloaf, underlining the need for ketchup and Worcestershire, staples of the American pantry, in the mixture. It is simple and invites innovation. She recommended roasting potatoes, carrots and onions alongside the free-form loaf cooked on a baking sheet.
2 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 to 3 medium carrots, finely chopped
2 to 3 celery stalks, finely chopped
1 pound ground beef
1/2 pound boneless pork chops, ground
3 cloves garlic, minced
1-1/4 cups fresh bread crumbs
salt and ground black pepper, to taste
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1-1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup tomato ketchup
1/3 cup water
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
2. Melt butter in a large skillet. Add the onion, carrots and celery and cook over medium-low heat until tender, stirring often, about 5 minutes.
3. Put the cooked vegetables in a large bowl. Mix in meats, garlic, breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, cayenne, Worcestershire, ketchup and water. Pat into an 11-by-7-inch oval shaped mound in a baking dish or on a heavy, rimmed sheet pan. Bake 45 to 50 minutes.
SAUSAGE AND MASHED POTATO LOAF: A TASTY INNOVATION
Makes 6 to 8 servings
3/4 pound baking potatoes
1-1/2 pounds bulk pork sausage
3 eggs, well beaten
an 8-ounce can kitchen ready tomatoes
1 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco
1-1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup minced onion, optional
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Pierce the potatoes with a heavy fork; bake on an oven rack for 1 hour, until tender. Cut the potatoes in half lengthwise and cool until easy to handle. Scoop pulp, about 1-1/2 cups, into a large bowl; mash with a fork.
2. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees. Remove sausage from the refrigerator; set aside. Add eggs to cooled mashed potatoes; stir until blended. Add half the tomato sauce, the mustard, pepper and Tabasco, bread crumbs, and onion; mix well.
3. Add sausage meat to the bowl; knead until all ingredients are completely blended. On a lightly greased sheet pan, form the meat mixture into a loaf, about 10-inches by 4-inches by 2-1/2 inches.
4. Bake for 1 hour, 10 minutes. Remove from oven; spread with remaining tomato sauce. Return to the oven; bake 15 minutes longer. Let stand for 10 minutes before slicing.
-- Linda Bassett is the author of "From Apple Pie to Pad Thai: Neighborhood Cooking North of Boston." Reach her by e-mail at KitchenCall@gmail.com. Read Linda's blog at LindABCooks.wordpress.com. Follow Linda for quick recipes on Twitter at @Kitchencall.