Like a lot of families that live around the port of La Spezia, my husband’s family came and settled here. Both his mother and his father’s families were from Tuscany. And although his parents had both passed away before Massi and I got together, I feel like I kinda know them through stories.
What I know of his mother Alessandra is that, she was a warm, generous, expressive, chiacchierone – a right chatterbox. Also, she was resourceful. Like my own mother, she knew how to stretch a lire , a dollar. This post, is about Polpettone alla Fiorentina, a homey, Florence style meatloaf that I like to imagine Alessandra would have made for us regularly had fate dealt us the privilege of many family meals together.
Italy offers a plethora of meatloaf recipes – many of them entailing seasoned meat, embellished with layers of cheese and vegetables, ‘swiss roll-ed’ and devotedly wrapped in delicate strips of pancetta before being baked. While these meatloaves, are total show-stoppers, this recipe is more modest. And yet, its simplicity is also, its superpower. With a chunk of crusty bread or roast spuds, a simple salad or, maybe some sauteed greens, it is just what you want for dinner.
The only thing that is complicated with this recipe, if you could even call it that, is the need for the meat to rest for at least 30mins in the refrigerator after it has been shaped into a loaf. Unlike other meatloaves, that are baked in a tin, this one, simmers slowly on the cooktop for around an hour, surrounded only by a tomatoey sauce. To hold up its shape, it really needs this resting time in the fridge.
The recipe feeds 3-4 adults. I often double it so I’m sure to have leftovers. However, doubling up, does crowd the pot. If I am cooking two loaves, I tend to brown the meat first in a low sided, wide frying pan, where I can flip the loaves more easily. I then transfer them both to a deeper stockpot, add the veggies, and let them simmer away together in the sauce. But again, it can get a bit overcrowded. My tip would be, to consider the size of your pot before you go multiplying the amounts and keep in mind that you need a pot with a well-fitted lid. Also when it comes to handling, the meatloaf is much easier to slice when it is cool so, consider making it in advance (better yet, the day before, really giving the flavours the chance to marry), gently reheating slices together with the rich, tomato sauce in a frypan. This recipe makes a generous amount of sauce, but any leftovers make for a lush topping for pasta.
In my head, I call this meatloaf Polpettone alla Fiorentina di Alessandra kidding myself, that Massi’s mother taught it to me, chatting constantly as she cooked for us. I wish I had met her, it sounds like she was, a dynamic, truly genuine and loving character. And, a thrifty Tuscan cook!
Tuscan Meatloaf ~ Polpettone alla Fiorentina
- 350g ground beef
- 100g pancetta in cubes (if using ham or bacon, finely chopped)
- 40g parmesan cheese, grated
- 1 egg
- pinch of nutmeg
- pinch of ground fennel seeds,
- salt and pepper
- plain flour for dusting
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ celery stalk, very finely chopped
- 1 carrot, finely chopped
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 400g tomato passata
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 sprig rosemary
Select a bowl wide enough to accommodate your hands. Then add in the beef, pancetta, parmesan cheese, egg, nutmeg and fennel and use your hands to combine. Season with salt and pepper. If the mixture seems too wet, add a teaspoon of flour. Shape into a compact loaf, tapping down firmly. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate and place in the wrap refrigerator for at least 30mins.
Dust the meatloaf with flour, shaking off any excess. On a medium flame, heat the olive oil in a stockpot. Add the meatloaf, cooking for several minutes. Turn the meatloaf carefully, browning each of its long sides.
Turn the heat down to low and add the chopped celery, carrot, and onion. Cook gently, stiring around the meatloaf for about 10 minutes or, until the vegetables are soft. If you are preparing two meatloaves, the pot will seem crowded, but just move the vegetables about as best as you can, as they soften they will shrink a little and give you some more wiggle room.
Add the tomato passata, 150ml of water and the herbs. Bring to a simmer then, cover the pot and leave for around 50 minutes. Remove the lid and continue cooking for another 15 minutes as the sauce thickens.
Remove the herbs. Cut the meatloaf into slices around 2cm thick. Serve slices covered in the tomato sauce.
