Dead Man Over Worms

Mike and I first saw this recipe while watching a Halloween special on The Food Network. What impressed me most about the dish was its uniqueness; it wasn't like many of the Halloween recipes out there which are just variations of each other. The original recipe calls for 3/4 cup milk and 1 cup cheddar cheese. I eliminated these when I made the recipe to account for some diet restriction but I am sure it will be just as delicious if you added them back. After all, it did win Emeril's Halloween Contest.

Serves: 4
Start to Finish: 2 hours
Recipe By: Nan Slaughter

Ingredients:

Meatloaf:
1 1/2 eggs (be creative, I know eggs don't come in 1/2 a portion; but it was the only way to get it to serve 4 people)
1 slice French bread, torn into small pieces (the french bread gives it nice character but you could use stale white bread if you needed to)
1/2 cup oatmeal
1/4 cup grated carrot
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 TBSP chopped fresh Italian parsley
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp dried parsley
1/4 tsp black pepper
pinch of dried thyme
pinch of dried bay leaves
1 lb lean ground beef
1 sausage link (mild Italian sausage)
1 (16-oz) pkg spaghetti noodles

Topping:
1 cup ketchup
1 cup brown sugar, packed
2 tsp prepared mustard
1/4 cup maple syrup (I made the recipe with the maple syrup but it was a little too sweet for my tastes, next time I would omit it. However, I think children would love it!)
1/2 cup of your favorite bottled marinara sauce

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, beat the eggs.
3. Add bread and oatmeal.
4. Stir in carrots, onions, parsley, and seasonings.
5. Add beef and sausage and mix well.
6. In a shallow baking dish, shape beef mixture into the shape of a body. Round ball for head, oval shape for body, mounding up for tummy. Shape arms and place next to body (you don't want them sticking out or they will cook too quickly). Shape legs and place next to each other, not apart. Smooth meatloaf so the "seams" are not apparent.
7. Make topping by combining: ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, maple syrup, and marinara sauce into a bowl.
8. Bake meatloaf for 45 minutes.
9. Spoon half of the topping over meatloaf.
10. Return meatloaf to the oven and continue baking for an additional 45 minutes or until meatloaf is cooked thoroughly. (Total baking time about 1 1/2 hours. Cover with foil if it gets too brown.)
11. While meatloaf is baking, cook spaghetti noodles according to package directions.
12. Rinse noodles and set aside.
13. When meatloaf is done, remove from oven and let stand for 10 minutes.
14. To serve: put spaghetti noodles on a tray and carefully place meatloaf on top of spaghetti noodles, using two spatulas. Don't worry if an arm or leg falls off, just "reattach" and cover with topping. Place a knife in the "heart" of the deadman and serve with remaining topping.