So you say you don’t like meat loaf!  Well clearly you have not eaten This meatloaf.  It is so delicious.  Nano always (no hyperbole there at all) served meat loaf with a baked potato and either carrots or beans or peas or corn.  Salad wasn’t something we ate very often, certainly not in the non growing seasons, which was when she usually made meat loaf.  My recipe is a little different from hers but I still serve mine with baked potato and more often than not, there is some variety of green salad on the plate along with a cooked vegetable.  (For those of you who don’t often cook baked potatoes because they take too long, let me give you a tip.  Always poke the potato a couple of times on all sides and then wrap it in a piece of paper towel.  Microwave for five minutes and then after removing the paper towel, put it into a 400 degree oven for one hour.  That’s how long it takes your meat loaf, so the oven will be on.  Microwave your potatoes one at a time and after taking the paper towel off each one, put it right into the oven.  Baked potatoes with crispy skin and soft insides are just the most delicious things.  Don’t forget to slice into it and add a generous amount of butter and salt and pepper, before eating.  I had never heard of putting sour cream, bacon bits, or cheese on my potato until much later into my teen years.  At home we ate them plain and simple.  Butter/salt/pepper)

But I digress!  We are here to talk about meat loaf.  But not just meat loaf.  This recipe can also be made into burgers.  yep! No kidding. I gave you a recipe for burgers a couple of years ago but this one is even easier. I usually buy the big package of ground beef from Costco, unless I am at the St. Lawrence Market and pick up some market ground beef. Nano always said that if she was going to be in the mess of making something, she might as well make a good big batch. Then there would be some in the freezer for another time. I adopted that philosophy and think it’s a great one. If you want to make a smaller batch, cut this recipe down. Two pounds of meat will serve four people generously. Feel free to leave any of the spices out or add something else you like.

So here you go and you are welcome. So So So Good!

One large package of ground beef from Costco crumbled into a LARGE bowl

1 bunch green onions
1 cup steel cut oats
1 tsp each of: sage(or poultry spice) granulated garlic, basil
1 tsp. salt
pepper to taste (Nano liked her pepper and so do I )
1 TBLSP. Dijon mustard
1 tsp. chili powder
1 TBLSP. soya sauce
1 TBLSP. balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp. garlic chili sauce (optional)
2 eggs

Mix all of the above ingredients together well. Don’t mash and squish the meat but just work everything in together, nicely.

Once everything is mixed nicely, form your meatloaf and or patties. I made a batch earlier this evening and this is what I ended up with. I don’t need any of it right this minute so everything is going to the freezer. I put the burgers on a parchment lined baking sheet and put them into the freezer for a couple of hours. Then I remove them and put the individually frozen patties into a ziploc bag and store them in the freezer. They can be used one or two or six at a time, when needed. I will remove whatever I want to use, about an hour before I want to cook it.

For the meat loaf I line a pyrex pan with parchment, making sure it is longer than the pan on the long side. If I am freezing the meat loaf I wrap it in the parchment and then when I am ready to bake it I unwrap, top with the sauce and bake it.

Before baking, unwrap the loaf and leave it sitting on the parchment paper, in a baking pan.
Bake for one hour at 400. I like my ground beef well cooked but if you prefer it to be medium, it will be cooked after 45 minutes.  You might not need all of the sauce. Spoon it generously on top of meat before baking and then, if you think it needs more, about 15 minutes before it has finished cooking, remove it from the oven and spoon more over the top and return to the oven.  There will likely be juice and drippings on the parchment when the meat comes out of the oven.  Just lift the meat from the parchment and set on a cutting board to slice it.
slice and serve!

Sauce for the meat loaf:
1 398 ml can aurora diced tomatoes
1 TBLSP. balsamic vinegar
1 TLSP. soya sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. sage or poultry seasoning
1 tsp. dijon mustard
I put my sauce into the blender for a quick pulse and then spoon it over the meat loaf
(sometimes I add chili powder and/or curry powder)  This sauce will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks.

You can use this same sauce as a barbecue sauce for your burgers.

I hope you enjoy this old favourite of mine.  It’s an old concept with a bit of a new technique.