Meatloat

Don't tell my family but meatloaf can be one of those meals you make that you can hide leftovers within it as long as there is not too much of one thing. Some things I have added to my recipe are mashed potatoes, stale bread (crumbed and exchanged for oats), leftover mushrooms, onions, carrots, etc. Any vegetable that you can chop fine can be used in a meatloaf. In order for it to work though you have to keep the quantities of "leftovers" down or it will eventually alter the flavor of the original recipe.

On Saturday, we took my meatloaf to a friend's house for a potluck dinner. It did not last long. For those friends reading this now, I did not add any "hidden" ingredients to the one I made Saturday. A couple of them asked for my recipe so here it is.

Meatloaf

1 lb ground beef

1 cup sharp shredded cheese

1 medium onion, chopped finely

1 small green pepper, chopped finely

2 eggs, slightly beaten

½ cup quick oats

½ cup catsup (can use less if you like a drier meatloaf)

2 Tbls prepared mustard

Topping:

¼ cup catsup

1 Tbls prepared mustard

1 Tbls packed brown sugar

Combine all ingredients together in bowl except topping. Put in sprayed loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until down in middle (internal temp of 160 degrees with meat thermometer). Combine topping ingredients. Spread across top of meatloaf. Put back in oven for 5-10 minutes until top is brown. Remove from oven and let cool for about 10 minutes. Enjoy! 

One other quick note. You can also substitute spaghetti sauce for catsup and use mozzarella cheese instead of cheddar to make an italian flavored loaf. I usually will add oregano and basil to the flavorings to make it more an italian taste.