Skinny Meatloaf (aka "Does this meatloaf make my pants look big?")

I have a confession to make. I don't like Lipton Onion Soup Mix (LOSM) I'm actually afraid of it.  I had that stuff cooked into almost every ground beef dish my Mom or Step-Dad made, and I couldn't stand it.  To make matters worse, my Step-Dad LOVED onions.  And he loved undercooked onions, and he loved piles and piles of onions where maybe half an onion would have worked perfectly.  I'm sure once my folks read this I'll be removed from the will.  I'll probably even be accused of being dramatic, but I can take it.  I can take it.  Bring it on, you onion pushers- bring it on. 


I was so traumatized by onions that I refused to cook with them until I was in my late twenties and even at that, I cooked those suckers until they were soggier than a school cafeteria spaghetti noodle.  Also, I would only add like a Tablespoon into my dishes.  As you can see, the anxiety over onions ran deep. So deep that I had 'onionmares'- which are much worse than nightmares- you'll have to just trust me on this one.  


One day, I don't remember it being a particularly special day, but one day I magically got over my fear of onions and found that I was cooking with them more frequently, and I was adding larger amounts of onions to some of my dishes.  They were still cooked through, but I was healing from the hellishness of being bullied by this pungent little veggie.

So, what does my former onion aversion have to do with my skinny meatloaf?  Well, I'll tell you.  Everyone I know makes meatloaf only one way- you guess it! With LIPTON ONION SOUP MIX (LOSM)!  Have you people no shame?  No creativity?  Huh?  So every time I contemplate making meatloaf a rush of onion-phobia washes over me.  I have to take a couple of deep breathes and then remind myself that there are no scary boxes of onion soup mix in my pantry- it's been blacklisted from ever entering my home.

In an effort to find a meatloaf recipe that I would enjoy and that TSM would enjoy (you guessed it, I married a LOSM lover, the hunt was on for a meatloaf that didn't call for a packet of this powdered MSG with freeze dried onions. 

About a year ago when I was doing research for a freelance writing job for a Meatloaf Cookbook I spent several days researching meatloaf recipes.  I had read  so many recipes that I was able to come up with this one without even trying any of the recipes I'd run across.  And, after I made it once, I knew I had a winner.  I didn't share this recipe for that project because I would have lost all rights to it, even though I'm sure there may be others out there that are similar, I mean it's meat- mounded into a loaf shape and baked.  Not that hard to figure out how to make that work.

TSM and I are trying to eat healthier and lose some weight, so I thought it would be nice to include some ground turkey and throw in some veggies and use only egg whites to make it healthier and lower in calories and fat.  I love fat and I love calories, but this meatloaf tasted spectacular without much of either, compared to what you'd find in a full beef recipe. So now that I've bored you with a story about onions, and I've managed to segue my story about onions into a post about meatloaf, I think you guys deserve the meatloaf recipe.  I feel like you've earned it.  And more, but this is all I have for you at the moment. :)


Skinny Meatloaf:

Recipe by: KaceyCooks
Serves 4-6
 

 INGREDIENTS:

·      3/4 lb. grass fed, or organic ground sirloin (95% lean)

·      3/4 lb. organic, or hormone and antibiotic free ground turkey breast (99% lean) (I ended up using 1 lb of turkey and 1/2 lb of sirloin)

·      1 cup fresh bread crumbs. I use organic bread and make my own

·      1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

·      1/2 cup finely chopped organic baby portabella mushrooms (my addition to add more veggies)

·      1/4 cup grated onions (I used my food processor with the grating attachment, but a cheese grater will work just as well)

·      2 egg whites (Organic)

·      3 Tablespoons whole organic milk

·      1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

·      1/2 teaspoon each kosher salt and black pepper

·      1/3 cup organic ketchup

·      1 Tablespoon prepared organic yellow mustard

·      2 teaspoons organic brown sugar, or regular brown sugar made from PURE cane sugar, not sugar beets. If it doesn't say pure cane sugar, it's sugar from a sugar beet and that is one of the top 10 GMO crops.
 

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F; coat a broiler pan with nonstick spray.
2. Combine ground sirloin, ground turkey breast, bread crumbs, parsley, mushrooms, onion, egg whites, milk, Worcestershire, salt and pepper in a bowl, using your hands to mix.  Do not over mix.
3. Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan, shaping it into a 9x5 inch loaf.
4. Stir together the ketchup, mustard and brown sugar in a bowl, then spoon on top of the meatloaf.
5. Bake meatloaf until an instant read thermometer reaches 160 degrees F, about 1 hour.  Let rest at least 15 minutes under an aluminum foil "tent" before slicing.

I served this with "skinny" mashed baby red potatoes- (using only 1 Tbsp butter, and chicken stock and only about 2 Tbsp. of milk and 2 Tbsp. of sour cream, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper)... in the past my mashed potatoes were full of cream, cream cheese, butter, milk, bacon- you name it, they were FAT!  :)

Personal notes: This meatloaf is a bit softer/not as dense as most. keep that in mind as you're shaping it. My sister in law makes this with all turkey, no beef and swears it is just as awesome.

**Do you have a food that you dislike or that you have a bad memory of from childhood?  I'd love to hear about it. Tell us in the comment section below!