By Kevin Williams
Loaf meals are popular with Amish cooks. Basically, if you can grind it, pound it, and pulverize it into a loaf, it’s appealing why? Well, it’s simple, hearty, and a great way to stretch meat out to feed large families. Hence, the popularity of meatloaf. But meatloaf, made of traditional hamburger, isn’t the only loaf game in town. Ham loaves, turkey loaves, chicken loaf, and even fish loaf all enjoy popularity in Amish homes.
Recipe tester Barbara gave this authentic Amish ham loaf a whirl. Curiously, the recipe called for ham, as you’d expect, but also hamburger, which you wouldn’t expect. But from what Barbara relayed to me, the additional of hamburger really just firmed up the loaf more and, I’m guessing, helps an Amish homemaker stretch out her pork supply. Barbara said you really can’t taste the hamburger in it. This sort of reminds me of those old A-1 steak sauce commercials, “what is hamburger, chopped ham?”
Other thoughts from Barbara about the recipe: Barbara would probably cut back the brown sugar to 1 /3 cup and increase the mustard to a tablespoon. But that is a matter of preference, so adjust accordingly. The pineapple juice adds a nice flavor splash and Barbara says you can eat it as a hot meal or sliced and served cold is good too. So this recipe has some versatility. Thank you Barbara for testing this for us!
Gathering the ingredients…
Into the loaf pans, note the pretty pink color!
And onto the supper table!
- 1 cup bread crumbs
- 1 cup milk
- 2 eggs
- 1 /2 cup brown sugar
- 1 /2 cup pineapple juice
- 1 teaspoon mustard
- 2 pounds ground ham
- 1 pound hamburger
- Mix well and shape into loaves.
- Bake at 350 for 1 hour.
AMISH FISH LOAF
1 pound diced, fresh fish (bluegill, bass) or 1 (15-ounce) can storebought salmon (see Note)
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup chopped celery
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 cups dried Fish Loaf bread crumbs
3 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
2 tablespoons minced onion
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large mixing bowl add diced fish. If using canned fish, do not drain. If using fresh fish, remove the skin and bones first. In a separate small bowl, beat the eggs with mustard, salt and pepper. Mix in milk, celery, bread crumbs, parsley and onions with a fork. Pack mixture into a greased 9-by-12-inch pan or smaller. Bake for 45 minutes or until the top begins to turn golden brown. Slice and serve warm.
More loaf meals:
