As a Sunday roast, Falscher Hase came into prominence after World War II. Meat was still scarce but housewives wanted to put a special dish on the table so they mixed chopped meats together, wrapped them around eggs and “roasted” the meatloaf in a shape reminiscent of rabbit, a highly prized meat. As per usual, bacon, or “Speck” spiked the flavor, as did parsley, mustard, Hungarian paprika and sour cream.
Serves 4
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 lb. ground round or half beef, half pork, ground
- 1 c. chopped onion (about 1 medium)
- 1/2 c. bread crumbs, divided
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
- 1 tsp. ground paprika
- 1 tsp. prepared mustard
- 3 T. chopped parsley
- 3 hard-boiled eggs, peeled
- 4 strips of bacon
- 1 c. beef broth
- 1/2 c. hot water, divided
- 1 tsp. cornstarch
- 1/2 c. sour cream (low fat is not recommended)
Preparation:
Chop onions very fine for even cooking. Mix the meat, onion, 3 tablespoons of the bread crumbs, the 2 raw eggs, salt, pepper, paprika, mustard and parsley thoroughly. Sprinkle the rest of the breadcrumbs on a cutting board and flatten out the meat mixture in a rectangle about an inch thick. Arrange the whole, hard-boiled eggs in a row down the middle. Fold the sides of the meat patty over the eggs. Form the meat into a nice, free-form loaf shape. Coat liberally in bread crumbs.
Preheat oven to 350°.
Chop 2 strips of bacon into small pieces and brown in a Dutch oven on the stove. Remove bacon pieces (reserve) and brown meatloaf on all sides in the bacon grease. Lay the remaining strips of bacon over the meatloaf, pour half the beef broth into the pan and place the Dutch oven in the preheated oven. Bake, basting occasionally with the remaining broth for about 45 minutes.
Remove meatloaf to a serving platter, cover with aluminum foil and keep warm. Place Dutch oven back on stove top and add 1/4 cup of hot water. Scrape all browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Mix cornstarch with 1/4 cup hot water and add to pan. Bring just to a boil, reduce heat and stir in sour cream. Try not to boil after sour cream has been added. Season with pepper and reserved bacon bits, if desired. Taste before adding more salt.
Serve meatloaf with boiled, parsley potatoes and steamed green beans.
