Thursday, February 17, 2011

Meatloaf

I had never made meatloaf before tonight. I guess I was intimidated by it and thougth it was hard to do, but I was pleasantly surprised. We bought beef back in the summer from a small sustainable ranch in Oregon where all of the cows are grass-fed and humanely raised.  The beef is very lean and has a wonderful flavor. So, with that starting point I thought I could make some pretty nice meatloaf. As with all of the things I cook, I can't leave it alone, I have to "healthy it up" a bit. So instead of bread crumbs I used oat bran and rolled oats and I added some carrot puree just for fun. Here's the recipe.

Meatloaf
Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1/2 C oat bran
1/2 C rolled oats
1/3 C pureed carrot (could use any veggie puree, I think)
2 Eggs
1/2 C ketchup (no HFCS!)
1/3 C diced onion
1/2 C shredded cheese (I used cheddar)
1/3 C milk
salt and pepper to taste

topping:
1/4 C ketchup
1 tsp worcester sauce
1 tsp cider vinegar

Directions:
Pour all ingredients in a mixing bowl, roll up your sleeves and mix with your hands. Make sure all ingredients are well incorporated into the mixture, then pour into a greased medium size loaf pan. Mix topping ingredients and spread on top of uncooked meatloaf. Bake at 350 for about an hour. Internal temperature should be 160 degrees.

I posted this recipe to Mary's What's For Dinner Wednesdays. Post yours too!


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3 comments:

  1. Nice lookin' meatloaf! Could you post more about this beef experience? Buying beef from Oregon? Did you have to escort it back? :P

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  2. We buy from R&A Paradise Ranch, in Oregon. Ava and her husband are the ranchers. You buy the beef on the hoof meaning we have to buy a whole, half or quarter cow (we shared a 1/4 with Kate's family). After the cow is slaughtered it's sent to the butcher, who calls to ask how you want it cut. Then when it's packaged and ready, Ava drives it up here to be picked up locally. When we run out we'll definitely order again. They are now offering pork and lamb from their ranch as well. They have a special running now if you buy before March you get 5% off the price. The link to the Cowgirl in Paradise blog is Ava's blog if you want to ask her questions. I'd recommend it for sure. I'm 100% certain that the beef I eat was grass fed and is as healthy as it can be. And the animals were treated well while they were alive. You can't ask much more.

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  3. Looks good. I make meatloaf a lot, and usually try different recipes each time. Mine uses oats, too. I like the pureed carrots in yours - that will get some veggies in one of my children, who is a very reluctant vegetable eater!

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