Pat Nixon's Meatloaf

OK, I can so see "Tricky Dick" eating the loaf. I ate a lot of meatloaf growing up. My mother's was a very "low-rent" meatloaf, with ground beef, bread crumbs, some chopped onions, ketchup, and then a few bacon slices across the top. The best part was the crunchy pieces that sat in the pan after the meatloaf was done. I know, it's a wonder I survived my childhood.

Pat Nixon's Meatloaf

This recipe for family-style meatloaf is from the Nixon administration and belonged to first lady Pat Nixon. It was so popular that the recipe was printed on White House stationery to be mailed on request. It appeared in "The White House Family Cookbook" by Henry Haller, 1987

• 2 Tbsp. butter
  
• 1 cup finely chopped onions
  
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
  
• 3 slices white bead
  
• 1 cup milk
  
• 2 pounds lean ground beef
  
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
  
• 1 teaspoon salt
  
• Ground black pepper, to taste
  
• 1 Tbsp. chopped parsley
  
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  
• 1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
  
• 2 tablespoons tomato puree
  
• 2 tablespoons bread crumbs

Grease a 13-by-9-inch baking pan. Melt butter in a saute pan, add garlic and saute until just golden - do not brown. Let cool. Dice bread and soak it in milk. In a large mixing bowl, mix ground beef by hand with sauteed onions and garlic and bread pieces. Add eggs, salt, pepper, parsley, thyme and marjoram and mix by hand in a circular motion. Turn this mixture into the prepared baking pan and pat into a loaf shape, leaving at least one inch of space around the edges to allow fat to run off. Brush the top with the tomato puree and sprinkle with bread crumbs. Refrigerate for 1 hour to allow the flavors to penetrate and to firm up the loaf. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake meatloaf on lower shelf of oven for 1 hour, or until meat is cooked through. Pour off accumulated fat several times while baking and after meat is fully cooked. Let stand on wire rack for five minutes before slicing. Makes 6 servings.