For me, meatloaf is the stuff of my childhood that I watched other children, American children, eat, on the myriad of programming that shaped my life. Whether it was Diff’rent Strokes or Punky Brewster or Family Ties or the Simpsons, they were always chowing down on meatloaf. And moaning about it. But it seemed so good!

So I gave it a go, and now I see why you’d moan about it if you had to eat it every week. It was good and all, but it’s a once or twice a winter dish for me, rather than a weekly thing. Still, it’s tasty and economical and makes a nice change.

You’ll need a 2lb loaf tin for this bad boy. Preheat the oven to 180C. You’ll feed 6-8.

800g lean minced beef
1 packet of good quality sausages, a half pound (or 227g), skins removed
1 egg, beaten
1 onion, finely minced
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon chopped sage leaves
1 tablespoon mustard
1 heaped tablespoon tomato puree
100g fresh breadcrumbs
Salt and pepper

1. Mix all the ingredients together with your hands in a large mixing bowl. Simples. Combine well and transfer to the loaf tin. Pat down until level and cover with a bit of oiled parchment or grease-proof paper.

2. Bake in the oven for approximately 90 minutes, removing the paper 15 minutes before the end, to get a nicely browned and crispy top.

3. Drain off the fat, slice, and eat with macaroni cheese or mashed potato and green beans.

I only have one photo because they were all so blurry. So here it is again. Sorry about that.