My Little Gourmet

I don’t know how well-known or popular meatloaf is here in Germany, but I do know (and I think most of my American readers would agree) that it is a classic family dinner in the states. This recipe is from an ancient copy of  the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook my mother gave me when I moved out here. I was recently thumbing through it to look for some inspiration when I cam across this meatloaf recipe I remembered from my childhood, and decided to test it out. It was WAY better than I remembered, but that could partly be due to the fact that we ate this meatloaf A LOT. 🙂

Making this is sooo easy…just combine all of the ingredients, press into a 5×9 in loaf pan and place in the oven. If you don’t have a loaf pan you can also just form it into a loaf and place it into a 9 x 13 in baking dish. Since the loaf pans here in Germany are a much different size, I made sure to use a meat thermometer (which I highly recommend you do as well) in order to determine when the meatloaf was done. As soon as the internal temperature reaches 160℉/71℃ you want to remove the meatloaf from the oven, top with the glaze and cook for another 10 minutes. If you keep the meatloaf in there for too long it will end up drying out. If you have children that aren’t too fond of vegetables you can easily add a grated carrot or zucchini, or both, to the meatloaf and they will never know. 🙂

My absolute favorite part about this recipe is the glaze. It takes just a minute to whip up and is the perfect addition to this meatloaf. If you want to use something different, I’ve been told barbecue sauce also makes a nice topping. Regardless of the topping, if you also have fond memories of meatloaf family dinners as a child, try this one out; it’ll take you back.

The Classic: Meatloaf

 

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Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

70 mins

Total time

1 hour 20 mins

 

Serves: 4

Ingredients

For the Meatloaf:

• 1½ lbs./500g ground beef
• 2 eggs, beaten
• ¾ cup/180ml milk
• ⅔ cup bread crumbs
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
• ½ teaspoon oregano
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper

For the Glaze:

• 3 tablespoons ketchup
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon mustard

Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 350℉/175℃.
2. In a bowl combine all ingredients for the meatloaf and mix well. Lightly pat mixture into a greased loaf pan.
3. Bake in the pre-heated oven for 50-60 minutes or until internal temperature is at 160℉. While meatloaf is baking combine ingredients for the glaze.
4. Once meatloaf is to temperature or the juices run clear, remove from the oven and spoon or drain off the fat.
5. Spread the glaze over the meat, return to oven and bake for about 10 minutes more.
6. Allow meatloaf to stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Notes

If you've got picky eaters at home, then add some grated carrot or zucchini to the meat, so they get their veggies without even knowing it.

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