Roquefort Meat Loaf

Forget the loaf pan, this one borrows from charcuterie. Ground beef, pork and veal get spread into a rectangle on parchment, slathered with a custardy Roquefort and bread filling, then rolled jelly-roll style into a long pinwheel.

Sliced cross-section, every piece reveals a swirl of meat wrapped around a streak of melted blue cheese. It looks like something out of a French country bistro and tastes considerably more refined than the loaf-pan version it replaces.

The filling is essentially a quick blue cheese panade. Scalded cream is poured over diced white bread to soften it, then mashed with crumbled Roquefort and an egg until spreadable. That bread-and-cream layer keeps the cheese from leaking out as the loaf cooks.

Pro Tips

• Leave a full 1-inch border around the cheese mixture before rolling. Filling that creeps to the edges will burst out the seam during baking.
• Roll tight and place seam side down on the foil-lined sheet. Loose rolls unravel and an exposed seam loses cheese to the pan.
• Use Roquefort or another firm-textured blue rather than gorgonzola dolce, which is too soft and runny for this technique.
• Let the loaf rest 10 minutes after it leaves the oven. Slicing too soon means the molten cheese center spills onto the cutting board instead of the plate.
• Three meats matter. The beef brings flavor, the pork brings fat, the veal keeps it tender. Skipping any one shifts the balance.

Variations

• Swap Roquefort for gruyere and add a tablespoon of grainy mustard for a milder, French-country version.
• Wrap the rolled loaf in bacon before baking for a crisp, smoky exterior.
• Mix ½ cup chopped sauteed mushrooms or caramelized onions into the cheese filling for extra savory depth.