From the Menu of ... Aspens Signature Steaks
2942 Shallowford Road N.E., Marietta, 678-236-1400


Q: Is there any chance of getting the recipe for the fabulous meatloaf served at Aspen s in east Cobb County? It’s the best I’ve ever had, and I would love to try to duplicate it at home. -- Susie Denigro, Roswell

A: This recipe offered some interesting insights into the differences between a restaurant kitchen and a home kitchen. The average home chef doesn’t have access to the same cuts of meat as a professional chef, noted Brian Kibler, executive chef at Aspens Signature Steaks in Marietta. “We’re starting where the butcher starts,” he said. So, when a menu item states that the meatloaf is made from beef tenderloin, Kibler isn’t using the cut tenderloin that home cooks can buy — for a price. Instead, he’s grinding up the trimmings on a whole tenderloin, which include some higher-fat parts that make for a juicy meatloaf. For home chefs, Kibler does not recommend buying a $30-per-pound tenderloin and grinding it up. Instead, he recommends using ground sirloin or ground chuck. Or talk to your butcher about those tenderloin trimmings.
This is a flavorful meatloaf with very little filler -- it’s mostly just meat, herbs and mushrooms. “It’s comfort food,” Kibler said. Because of the small quantity of pork, you might want to buy the meat from a butcher (or double the recipe).

— Deborah Geering,
for the Journal-Constitution