Mini Meat Loaves with Parmesan Mash

These look like they would take hours to put together but in fact were so easy not to mention absolutely delicious and pretty good on the wallet too!  Rich pork and veal mince paired with sage, wrapped in prosciutto and topped with a thick, gorgeously scented tomato sauce looked so cute on the plate that the  whole family were impressed with these little bundles of joy.......until they realised there were no left overs!

Serves 4

1 tbs of olive oil
500gm of pork and veal mince
12 slices of very thin prosciutto
1 brown onion, very finely diced*
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped*
2 sticks of celery, very finely chopped*
1 tbs of chopped fresh sage
1 cup of bread crumbs
1/4 cup of grated parmesan
1 egg, lightly beaten
Sea salt and cracked black pepper

For the Sauce:

1/2 tbs of olive oil
1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp of dried oregano
a pinch of ground cinnamon
1/4 cup of dry red wine
250ml of tomato passata
2 tbs of chopped fresh parsley
1/2 tsp of sugar
Sea salt and pepper

For the Mash:

800gm of cream delight potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
1/2 cup of milk
40gm of butter
1/2 cup grated parmesan
Sea salt and pepper


Bring the potatoes to the boil in a large saucepan of salted water and boil until tender.  Pre heat the oven to 180°.

Heat a medium sized frypan and add the oil.  Gently fry the onion, garlic and celery until soft.  Place the mince, sage, breadcrumbs, parmesan and onion mixture into a large mixing bowl.  Add the beaten egg, season with salt and pepper and mix with your hands until well combined.  You should have a really nice thick consistency that doesn't stick to your hands.  Break the mixture up into four equal portions and shape each portion into little mini loaves.  Spread out a slice of prosciutto and lay your mini meat loaf along it lengthways.  Fold up the ends and then wrap the other two pieces around the loaf so you have a neat, little bundle with the ends all tucked in.  Repeat with the three remaining loaves.  Place the loaves on a lined baking tray and bake for approximately 40 minutes.

While the loaves are cooking, heat a small saucepan and add the oil, garlic, oregano and cinnamon.  fry until fragrant, then pour in the wine and reduce for a minute before adding the passata and mixing well to combine.  Season with salt, pepper and sugar and cook for 5 minutes on a very low heat, with the lid on so all the flavours can meld.  Just before serving add 1/2 the chopped parsley and stir through the sauce, leaving the rest for garnish.

Drain your potatoes and mash well with a masher until all lumps are gone.  Put the saucepan back on a low heat and add the milk, butter, parmesan and salt and pepper.  Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until smooth and delicious.

Remove the meat loaves from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes.  With a sharp knife, slice each one in half diagonally.  Serve an equal portion of mash on four serving plates.  Arrange a meatloaf on each plate and drizzle over the tomato sauce.  Sprinkle over the remaining parsley and serve with a bowl of steamed greens or a crisp green salad.

* To speed things up, you could blitz these ingredients in a food processor.