Roast meatloaf stuffed with spinach and mozzarella

Method

Here's a thought for meatloaf-lovers: mix some minced beef and pork sausage meat, roll it around a filling of spinach and mozzarella, bake until crusty, then serve with home-made tomato sauce. Serve with a pile of steamed green beans, or roast halved brussels sprouts and chunks of potato alongside the meatloaf until golden.

Heat oven to 200C. Soak bread in milk for 10 minutes, then lightly squeeze dry. Cook spinach in very little water until wilted, then drain, squeeze dry and roughly chop. Mix spinach with diced mozzarella, parmesan, salt and pepper.

In a large bowl, combine bread with minced beef, sausage meat, tomato paste, oregano, cayenne, nutmeg, parsley, salt and pepper. Add egg and knead until well mixed. Shape mixture into flat rectangle (22 x 28-centimetres) on large sheet of baking paper. Scatter spinach and cheese on top and use baking paper to form tight roll. Flip roll over so join is underneath and pat ends to seal.

Transfer, with baking paper, to a baking tray, add wine or water to the pan and bake for one hour until lightly browned. Cut into slices and serve with home-made tomato sauce and parsley.

Tip: For 20-minute tomato sauce. In a saucepan, combine 400 grams canned chopped tomatoes, half a cup of water or wine, fresh herbs such as thyme, basil or parsley, a good pinch of dried oregano, one teaspoon sugar, sea salt and pepper and a good slug of olive oil. Bring to the boil, stirring, then simmer for 20 minutes until silky.