Fantastic Meatloaf Recipe

Entertain me for a moment. Put on a grumpy face and in your most pouty tone of voice say, “Meatloaf…Beatloaf….I HATE Meatloaf”. Can you name that movie? Or are you only reminded of the chorus of little voices around the dinner table whenever you serve meatloaf? That’s what I used to hear until I tried this recipe. It is now the favorite meal of the entire family, one of those meals they actually beg for. No matter what your family thinks of meatloaf, try it. It’s that good (and easy :)).

• 2 eggs
• 2/3 cup milk
• 3 slices bread
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 4 oz. shredded cheese
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef

Topping (since tomato sauce typically comes in an 8 oz. can, I double this, using a can of tomato sauce, almost a cup of brown sugar, and 2 teaspoons mustard)

• 1/2 cup tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon mustard

Beat eggs. Add milk and bread and let stand until bread absorbs liquid. Stir in onion and cheese. Add ground beef. Mix well. Shape into a loaf. (I prefer to put it in an 8X8. It makes it thinner so it cooks faster, plus there’s more sauce which is what makes it so yummy).

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Combine topping and spoon over the meatloaf after 30 minutes. Continue to spoon topping over meatloaf every 10 minutes until the meatloaf is done cooking (brown the entire way through). Note: I’ve found that sometimes this can take up to an hour depending on how thick you made your loaf.

This also freezes wonderfully well. Just place meat mixture in a gallon size bag, push flat and freeze. (Don’t freeze sauce…just make when you are cooking the meatloaf). Thaw completely before cooking.

Oh and by the way, the movie is the Christmas Story. The younger son’s complaints come just before his mom has him act like a pig and eat the whole thing. Though I don’t recommend having your kids snort while they eat, they just may eat like pigs after tasting this meatloaf. Happy Eating!