meatloaf mania

by brielle

i haven't seen alissa in about 10 days, which for us is quite depressing so i decided to cook her dinner for her homecoming.

tonights dish: cheesy bacon turkey meatloaf 

meatloaf ingredients:

1 package (about 1.3 lbs) lean ground turkey meat
2-3 slices whole grain bread 

1 egg
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped white onion
4 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled (i used turkey bacon)
2 wedges Laughing Cow cheese
1 tablespoon barbecue sauce
generous dash Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon jarred minced garlic (or 2 cloves)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 tablespoon olive oil (for sauteeing veggies)

topping/glaze ingredients:

1 tablespoon barbecue sauce
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 tablespoon spicy brown mustard

directions: 

first, preheat oven to 350 degrees.

secondly, toast the bread in the toaster oven. Put the toasted bread into the food processor and pulse until you have breadcrumbs. Set breadcrumbs aside.

next, sautee the pepper, onion, and garlic with olive oil until it's cooked through.

now, place all of the loaf ingredients (except for the Laughing Cow cheese) in a large bowl and combine well with your hands. kinda gross, but kinda fun..

then, spray a loaf pan or casserole dish with nonstick spray and put mixture into the pan.

next, slice each cheese wedge into thirds or fourths. stick each piece of cheese throughout the turkey mixture, pressing it into the middle of the loaf. try to seal the “holes” so the top of the meatloaf is flat again.

almost done! just combine glaze ingredients in a bowl, and spread the mixture evenly over the top of the meatloaf.

lastly, bake for 1 hour at 400 degrees and TAH-DAH! 

serve it with a simple salad, and you've got the perfect balanced meal!

found this intriguingly healthy recipe for turkey meatloaf, one of my favorite dishes, from www.girlmeetslife.com, one of my favorite blogs.

xo