- 3 cups chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 pinch saffron
- 1 1/2 cups long-grain rice
- 1/2 cup jarred piquillo or roasted red peppers, drained and pureed in a food processor
- 1 pound ground meat (a mixture of beef, pork and veal)
- 2 teaspoons sweet smoked paprika
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- 1/3 cup bread crumbs
- 1/4 cup grated Manchego or Pecorino Romano cheese (eyeball it)
- 1/4 cup sliced Manzanilla olives with pimientos, chopped
- 1 large egg, beaten
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), eyeball it
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. In a medium pot, bring the chicken broth to a boil with the butter and saffron. Add the rice, cover and simmer over low heat until tender, about 18 minutes. Stir in the pepper puree, cover and turn off the heat; set aside.
- While the rice is cooking, in a large bowl, using a fork, combine the meat with the paprika, 1/2 cup tomato sauce, the onion, garlic, bread crumbs, cheese, olives and egg; season with salt and pepper. Form the meat mixture into four 1 1/2-by-6-inch oval loaves. Arrange the loaves on a nonstick baking sheet, drizzle with the EVOO, and top with the remaining 1/2 cup tomato sauce. Bake until firm and crisp on the bottom, about 20 minutes. Serve the individual meat loaves with the piquillo pepper rice.