Oh, I have a funny story to share... After having my third child, one of our friends delivered a meal to us and, although delighted not to have to cook dinner, I was so disappointed when I looked to see it was meatloaf. "Oh, no (ick)! How am I going to eat this AND be able to thank her for the great meal afterward?!". Well, not only did I eat my words, I also ate way more than my share of her delicious meatloaf. Again, an 'I've grown up' taste change I am thankful for. Here's something else funny... The recipe I'm sharing isn't the same as the one sweetly delivered to my door three years ago, but it is just as delicious! And, what makes it even better - it's a skinny version. Wahoo!
I've been meaning to make my own meatloaf ever since that 'revelation day' when I discovered I do, indeed, like meatloaf. I'm not sure what kept me from making it for so long - maybe it was the scary process of putting meat into a pan and expecting it to come out as...a loaf. Now that I'm a bit more health conscious than I was three years ago, I had to forgo the original recipe (even though it was SO delicious) and find a healthier method. Enter: ground turkey. Seriously, I think this is the miracle meat. It's so much lower in fat and calories than ground beef yet can be used as a substitute in almost any ground beef recipe. And, most people won't even taste the difference (or may prefer it)! This is especially important when it comes to my kids. They LOVE tacos, so when I started using ground turkey instead of traditional beef, I feared they wouldn't eat. But...they've never noticed the difference and still munch up those tacos like they're going out of style. I digress... Turkey meatloaf - like the traditional only better. And, topped with barbecue sauce instead of ketchup? Oh, my - moist and delicious!
Ingredients:
1 - 1 1/4 lbs ground turkey (a typical Jennie-O package is 1.25 lbs)
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
1 cup chopped yellow onion
1/2 cup + 1/2 cup barbecue sauce
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 egg whites
1/4 tsp salt
ground black pepper to taste
Directions:
ONE: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Instead of using a loaf pan, simply line a baking sheet with foil and shape by hand. This allows for the fat to run out and away from the meatloaf, rather than being cooked into it. Clever! Oh, and you may want to spray the foil before shaping - mine stuck a bit after cooking.
TWO: In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients except for 1/2 cup of barbecue sauce - this is reserved for the top. I mixed mine by hand, but you could certainly use a utensil. Mix well.
THREE: Place meatloaf mixture onto the pan and shape by hand into a 9x3 (this is SO approximate) loaf.
FOUR: Spread the reserved 1/2 cup of barbecue sauce over the top of the meatloaf and bake for 1 hour. Let stand and cool for about 5 minutes before slicing.
My husband ooooh'd and aaaah'd over this meatloaf and told me I could make it whenever I wanted. Even my daughter, after hesitantly tasting it, asked for a slice. And, me? I could have eaten half the loaf - but didn't. :) Try it and let me know what you think in the comments below!
Nutrition note: The original recipe calculated each serving (about 1/4 or 1/5 of the loaf, depending on if you use 1 pound or 1.25) to be 252 calories, but when I put all the ingredients into Livestrong.com, I came up with about 350 calories. Either way, a few slices with some veggies makes for a great, filling meal (and one that has far fewer calories than its 'beefy' cousin).
I've been meaning to make my own meatloaf ever since that 'revelation day' when I discovered I do, indeed, like meatloaf. I'm not sure what kept me from making it for so long - maybe it was the scary process of putting meat into a pan and expecting it to come out as...a loaf. Now that I'm a bit more health conscious than I was three years ago, I had to forgo the original recipe (even though it was SO delicious) and find a healthier method. Enter: ground turkey. Seriously, I think this is the miracle meat. It's so much lower in fat and calories than ground beef yet can be used as a substitute in almost any ground beef recipe. And, most people won't even taste the difference (or may prefer it)! This is especially important when it comes to my kids. They LOVE tacos, so when I started using ground turkey instead of traditional beef, I feared they wouldn't eat. But...they've never noticed the difference and still munch up those tacos like they're going out of style. I digress... Turkey meatloaf - like the traditional only better. And, topped with barbecue sauce instead of ketchup? Oh, my - moist and delicious!
Ingredients:
1 - 1 1/4 lbs ground turkey (a typical Jennie-O package is 1.25 lbs)
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
1 cup chopped yellow onion
1/2 cup + 1/2 cup barbecue sauce
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 egg whites
1/4 tsp salt
ground black pepper to taste
Directions:
ONE: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Instead of using a loaf pan, simply line a baking sheet with foil and shape by hand. This allows for the fat to run out and away from the meatloaf, rather than being cooked into it. Clever! Oh, and you may want to spray the foil before shaping - mine stuck a bit after cooking.
TWO: In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients except for 1/2 cup of barbecue sauce - this is reserved for the top. I mixed mine by hand, but you could certainly use a utensil. Mix well.
THREE: Place meatloaf mixture onto the pan and shape by hand into a 9x3 (this is SO approximate) loaf.
FOUR: Spread the reserved 1/2 cup of barbecue sauce over the top of the meatloaf and bake for 1 hour. Let stand and cool for about 5 minutes before slicing.
My husband ooooh'd and aaaah'd over this meatloaf and told me I could make it whenever I wanted. Even my daughter, after hesitantly tasting it, asked for a slice. And, me? I could have eaten half the loaf - but didn't. :) Try it and let me know what you think in the comments below!
Nutrition note: The original recipe calculated each serving (about 1/4 or 1/5 of the loaf, depending on if you use 1 pound or 1.25) to be 252 calories, but when I put all the ingredients into Livestrong.com, I came up with about 350 calories. Either way, a few slices with some veggies makes for a great, filling meal (and one that has far fewer calories than its 'beefy' cousin).
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