The stuffed bread meatloaf is a leftover dish, you know when there’s a little bit of everything left and you think you have nothing? Actually, it’s the opposite, we can create tasty dishes by putting together a bit of this and a bit of that. Stale bread is something everyone has, two eggs are always available, a handful of spinach too, throw in a small mozzarella or cheese, a bell pepper, and an onion… and you’ll be surprised at the recipe we’ll create.
But the stuffed bread meatloaf is also a vegetarian dish, my son loves it, so if you have a guest who doesn’t eat meat or fish, you’ll make them happy with this spinach-stuffed meatloaf served with a delicious bell pepper cream. With stale bread, you can make many other recipes like pappa al pomodoro or panzanella.
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very cheap
- Rest time: 30 Minutes
- Portions: 8People
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 8.8 oz stale bread
- 3.5 oz potatoes (boiled)
- 1.7 cups milk
- 10.5 oz spinach, cooked, boiled
- 8.8 oz cherry mozzarella balls (or other cheese as desired)
- 1.7 oz cheese (grated)
- 2 eggs
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 bunch chopped parsley
- to taste salt, pepper, spicy paprika
- bell pepper (1 whole)
- onion (1 whole)
Steps
Cut the stale bread into small pieces and place it in a bowl.
Pour the milk over it and let it soften for at least 30 minutes.In the meantime, boil the potatoes, peel them, and mash them.
Blanch the spinach leaves in salted water, drain them and set aside.
After the bread has softened in the milk, squeeze it and add the mashed potatoes.
Add the grated cheese, eggs, chopped parsley, and garlic clove, oil, half a teaspoon of salt, a teaspoon of paprika, and a sprinkle of freshly ground black pepper.
Mix the mixture with your hands, if needed add a few tablespoons of breadcrumbs to make it more compact, and let it rest for 15 minutes.
On a sheet of parchment paper, previously oiled, pour the mixture and spread it.
Lay the spinach, cherry mozzarella balls or other cheese as desired, or grated Parmesan on top.
You can also get creative with other ingredients you have in the fridge, like cooked ham and cheese slices, salami and smoked scamorza…
Roll the bread meatloaf onto itself, using the parchment paper to help.
Seal the lateral edges well and shape the meatloaf.
Wrap the bread meatloaf in the parchment paper and place it in a baking dish that fits.
You can also use a large and long loaf pan.
Bake the meatloaf in the oven at 356 Fahrenheit for 40 minutes.
BELL PEPPER CREAM: In the meantime, prepare the bell pepper cream by putting sliced onion with oil and sliced bell peppers, salt, and pepper in a pan and browning them until they are cooked.
Finally, blend the peppers to obtain a smooth cream.Let the meatloaf cool slightly before cutting into slices and serve it with the bell pepper cream, black olives, and a sprinkle of freshly chopped parsley as garnish.
