Your Share: Pinwheel Meat Roll

Betty Crocker’s You Share cookbook with “52 menus, 226 recipes, and 369 hints on food buying, preparation, meal planning, and serving” was published in 1943 to help women cope with food rationing during World War II. “Betty” tells us that we have to make a little do where there was an abundance before…we must prepare satisfying meals out of our share of what is available.  And so, the cookbook starts out with how to stretch meat to make the most of it.  With her help, we are able to serve four or five people with one pound of ground beef (7 points versus the 12 points it takes to buy a 1 pound porterhouse steak that only feeds 2 or 3 people) The Pinwheel Meat Roll is supposed to serve six people with one pound of meat.  I’m here to tell you that those six people must be eating giant servings because we usually get about 8-9 servings out of it.  I love this dish.  It isn’t a “prepare in 15 minutes” dish but it can be prepared and refrigerated on a Sunday evening to be popped into the oven on a Monday. Pinwheel Meat Roll

• To prepare Golden Filling, cooked the onion and celery in the butter until yellow.

• While the onions and celery are cooking, mix together the meat roll ingredients in a medium size bowl.  I find that mixing the ingredients with my hands does the best job of incorporating everything (even though it does make me a bit squeamish).

• Place the meat mixture between two pieces of plastic wrap (wax paper will work and is in the original recipe but it has a tendency to tear and it is a pain picking little pieces of paper out of the roll).  Using a rolling pin, roll into an oblong shape about 1/4″ thick.

• Add the cooked carrots and 1/4 tsp. salt to the onion and celery mixture for the filling.

• Remove the top layer of plastic wrap (or waxed paper).  Spread with Golden Filling.

• Roll up as if you were making a jelly roll.  It helps to lift it up using the plastic wrap and then pulling the wrap away as you roll the meat roll into shape.

• Chill (I usually skip this step).
• Bake in an 8 x 12″ inch pan, uncovered, 1 hour in a moderate oven (350º F).

“Betty” suggests serving it with gravy or a creamy sauce or a creamed vegetable.  I don’t think it needs gravy or a creamy sauce when it is first served.  However, if you serve it again as a “planned over,” you made need to add a little chili sauce–ketchup with a kick–to keep it moist.

Added bonus: My Honey enjoys having it cold in a meatloaf sandwich the next day or two. Enjoy!