~For my cousin at UGA who requests cheap and easy meals to impress friends and not break the bank
Meatloaf. A steeple food in American cuisine, and a solid go to crowd pleaser. I have this cousin who is always urging me to make something for him that’s cheap yet fantastic. Challenge accepted. Considering a lot of my meals are more gourmet than simple I wanted to work within a limit this time. A lot of the ingredients I used most people have laying around the house . If not…. this may get a tad pricey. My suggestion is to ask a friend to borrow something! You never know until you ask I always say plus saving three to four dollars per spice could really help out. Consider it a cooking investment. Most spice containers last me about 2 months and that’s heavy use. Mind you that is my profession; meaning a typical “broke” college student could have these for as long as an entire semester. Back to the task at hand…okay meatloaf. Vegetables, spices, ground beef (or turkey for some) and something to bind all these things together. Then a glaze most commonly made with ketchup and sugar. This oughta be fun!
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients:
2 lbs Ground beef chilled
1/2 pack of pre cooked mixed vegetables
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp thyme
1 tbsp sage
1 tsp cayenne
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp powdered mustard
2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp oil
2 beaten eggs
1 c breadcrumbs
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp yellow mustard
2 tbsp bbq sauce
1/2 c ketchup
salt & pepper to taste
Procedure:
Prep time: 25 min Cook time: 1 hr 15 min
In a non stick pan heat butter, garlic and oil on medium heat. Add vegetables and cook uncovered for 5 minutes. Proceed to add herbs, seasonings and 1/4 of the catsup (1/8 cup if you don’t wanna do the math) Cook another 5 minutes stirring frequently. Remove from heat and let cool
Preheat oven to 325
In a large mixing bowl shred beef gently by hand then add vegetables, eggs and bread crumbs. Grease a 9×4 baking pan and set to the side. Mix all ingredients together and pack into pan.
Bake for 30 minutes
While this is baking we want to make the glaze. This glaze is so incredibly easy that anyone can make this really well. Combine mustard, bbq, remaining catsup and brown sugar in a bowl . Use a whisk or fork to blend this until the sugar is incorporated and all grains are gone
Remove the meatloaf after 30 minutes and top with glaze. Spread evenly with a spatula or spoon and bake additional 40 to 45 minutes.
Remove one more time and let sit for 15 minutes. Carefully slice and enjoy! I had mine with yukon gold potatoes which I wrapped in tin foil and baked with the meatloaf the entire on time. Seasoned with Mrs. Dash salt free herb seasoning and a dollop of butter.
