Meatloaf brings back loads of childhood memories for me. I was not raised in a house where meatloaf meant a sauced-up, overly breaded, flavorless hunks of meat. No...meatloaf meant filling the whole house with the most pleasant aromas of my youth. Tangy, sweet, and mouthwatering smells that would hit my nose and cause me to begin salivating when I stepped out of the shower, dressed down for the evening, and prepared myself for that special meal. Meatloaf meant daddy, special occasions, and celebrations. It meant I'd earned straight A's that quarter and been allowed to request my favorite meal. It meant exciting and important company was coming for dinner. It meant mashed potatoes and peas on the side, two of my favorite things.
This isn't my dad's memorable recipe; even he doesn't remember how he used to make it anymore. But I adore this recipe, and it is wonderfully similar to the one I enjoyed growing up. It's taken a couple of years, a few tweaks, and a few more adjustments to get it right, but I'm positive that this meatloaf will go down in my own children's memories as my father's did in mine. The best part -- it takes very little prep work and is a much healthier version of what I ate growing up. I hope it remains in your memories as it has in mine. And don't forget -- take a shower (or a bubble bath) while it's in the oven. I promise, the aroma when you step out of that steamy bathroom all relaxed and wound down will be better than any aromatherapy you've encountered thus far.
Sweet and Tangy Meatloaf
Yields: 4 servings
Serving Size: 2 slices or 1/4 loaf
PointsPlus per Serving: 5 P+
Ingredients
1 pound 93/7 ground beef
1/4 cup skim milk
1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1 large egg
1/2 TBS minced ginger root
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 TBS Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 cup BBQ Sauce (I generally use Sweet Baby Ray's)
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine all ingredients EXCEPT BBQ sauce in a medium mixing bowl.
Mix and Knead ingredients together until thoroughly combined.
Form into a loaf and place inside a loaf pan. (If you do not have a loaf pan, line any sized baking pan with foil, spray with spray oil, and place formed loaf on the foil - I've done it this way a million times before discovering that I owned a loaf pan!)
Coat loaf with the 1/4 cup of BBQ sauce.
Loosely cover pan with tin foil.
Bake at 350 for 60 minutes. (This is when you should be taking that shower or bubble bath ;) Tell your husband that the recipe requires it!)
Slice into 8 slices (that's four 2-slice servings) and Enjoy!
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