Janet Bostwick wrote:
>> I use ketchup in meatloaf because the recipe I follow uses it, and I'm
>> extremely happy with the recipe. Your blanket condemnation seems
>> unreasonably limiting to me, and I reject it.
>>
> Will you share your recipe? My meatloaf is the plain, middle US
> variety. I recently tried Alton Brown's recipe and thought that I
> found it too seasoned (maybe salty) for my taste. However, it made
> the best darn meatloaf sandwiches. I've heard of putting catsup
> (ketchup) on meatloaf while baking, but never heard of it as an
> ingredient. I'd like to try it and see.
> thanks

This is from _The New Basics_
(http://www.amazon.com/New-Basics-Coo.../dp/B005M4AB9Y)

Market Street Meat Loaf

3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4 cup finely chopped onion
3/4 cup finely chopped scallions, white and 3 inches green
1/2 cup finely chopped carrots
1/4 cup finely chopped celery
1/4 cup minced red bell pepper
1/4 cup minced green bell pepper
2 teaspoons minced garlic
3 eggs
Salt, to taste
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 cup catsup
1/2 cup half-and-half
2 pounds lean ground beef chuck
12 ounces sausage meat (not fennel-flavored Italian sausage)
3/4 cup fine fresh bread crumbs, toasted

Melt the butter in a heavy skillet and add all the vegetables. Cook,
stirring often, until the moisture has evaporated from the vegetables,
about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool, then refrigerate, covered, until
chilled, at least one hour.

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Put the eggs in a mixing bowl and beat well. Add the salt, black pepper,
white pepper, cayenne pepper, cumin, and nutmeg, and beat until
well-combined. Add the catsup and half-and-half; blend thoroughly.

Add the chuck, sausage meat, and bread crumbs to the egg mixture. Then
add the chilled vegetables and mix with your hands, kneading for 5 minutes.

With damp hands, form the mixture into an oval 17 x 4 1/2 x 1 1/2 inches
-- resembling a long loaf of bread. [HA! Not like any bread *I* ever baked!]

Place the meat loaf into a baking dish and place the baking dish inside
a larger pan. Place the nested pans into the oven. Pour boiling water
into the larger pan until it comes halfway up the sides of the baking dish.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Remove the baking dish from the water bath
and allow the meat loaf to rest for 20 minutes before slicing and serving.

[NOTE: I don't bother with the water bath. Sometimes I make this in a
loaf pan, other times I use a sheet pan.]

Bob