Aaaaaand here comes winter! OUCH! It finally showed up late with a BANG. Nothing like waking up and seeing that the temp is 2º. I went out to fill the bird feeder and sneezed. I swear I “snowed”. 😀
THAT kind of cold just plain hurts.
Single-digit temperatures have but one cure. A big old-fashioned farm-style supper that warms you from head to toe!
And that’s exactly what I did. 😉
A nice, juicy, hearty meatloaf was in order! If you hated meatloaf as much as me as a kid, don’t worry, this isn’t like your mama’s meatloaf! No big ol’ hunks of onion and green pepper, dry, overcooked, and flavorless. (Sorry, Mom.) Nope. This is wonderful!! Moist, juicy, flavorful, with an amazing brown sugar glaze top and bottom!
The meatloaf mixed, shaped and placed into the casserole dish with sauce on the bottom, leaving alittle space around the edges for browning and breathing room!
Don’t forget to top your meatloaf with a nice sprinkle of coarse ground black pepper before popping into the oven! It makes the crust so much better!
And here he is, hot out of the oven, before topping with more sauce. Doesn’t he look handsome?! 😀
And here’s the meatloaf all done and resting! Hard to resist, isn’t it?!!
The rich, creamy, semi-sweet dark brown sugar and tomato ketchup topping with a hint of barbecue sauce is worth swiping a little taste, lemme tell ya! 😉
Not that I have ever actually done that…noooooo. Not me. 😉 😉
It was a quintessentially perfect farmhouse-style supper that bitter cold evening! We had homemade mashed potatoes, homemade beef gravy, country green beans with bacon, and that gorgeous, moist and juicy meatloaf!
What a supper!! 😀
I think that’s why I hated meatloaf so much when I was a kid, in that, it was just plain dry. This is anything BUT. The most moist meatloaf you’ve ever had, I promise! And it always slices like a dream, never falling apart, and not hard like a brick, either.
Just right. 😉
One key thing to this though, you can’t use a lower quality, fatty ground beef for this. Tried it and major fail. I use the ground beef from Wally World that has the green label (Lean Ground Beef), which is 93% lean. It works beautifully! Anything less and it will fall apart.So make sure that you purchase the right amount of beef to fat ratio.
So, even if you swear you hate meatloaf, please give it one last chance! You won’t be sorry and you’ll be so glad that you did. This comes together super fast, it’s a breeze to make, and has enough baking time that you can fix whatever sides you want while it’s in the oven plus the resting time.
A heartwarming, stick-to-your-ribs comfort food meal to the max, that will have you thinking that you’ve stepped back in time and are once again gathered around Grandma’s table when the entire house smelled cozy and delicious. 😉
I hope this makes your next Sunday dinner a memorable one! 🙂
Take care all! ~Kelly
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients
Sauce For Bottom:
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1/2 Tbl. barbecue sauce, I use Sweet Baby Ray's
- 1/8 tsp. spicy brown mustard
For Meatloaf:
- 2 lbs. lean ground beef, I use at least 93% lean for this recipe
- 3/4 cup milk
- 2 extra large eggs, beaten
- 2 tsp. seasoned salt
- 1/4 tsp. coarse ground black pepper
- 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
- 3/4 cup italian seasoned dried breadcrumbs
- 1 1/2 Tbl. dried minced onion
- more pepper for top
Sauce For Top:
- 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1 tsp. bbq sauce
Instructions
In a small bowl, mix sauce for bottom well.
Spray a 1 1/2 qt. baking dish. Pour sauce onto bottom.
In large bowl, gently but thoroughly, mix meatloaf ingredients until well incorporated but do not over mix. Shape into a loaf and place into prepared casserole dish. Reshape as needed smoothing top and sides of any cracks. Sprinkle top with more pepper.
Bake in a 350º oven for 45-50 minutes.
Remove, mix topping in a small bowl until creamy, spread whole exposed top with topping, bake for 15-20 minutes longer.
Let rest for 15 minutes. Remove from casserole dish using 2 large spatulas before slicing.
Notes
If your meatloaf is shaped with a tall dome, go by the longer times and make sure it is done in the middle before serving.
