Best Meatloaf Ever

Jaime
October 4, 2021
Dinner, Food, Juggling life, Meal Prep, Weekly Recipe Wins
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Are you ready for fall and comfort food? This recipe for the Best Meatloaf Ever hits the spot!

Meatloaf cooked — This hearty meatloaf is the best fall comfort food!

As the weather finally turns cold and we all start to bring out our cozy sweaters, I always want to dig in to all those recipes that mean fall to me. One of my go-to recipes is this one for the Best Meatloaf Ever!

Nothing says fall and comfort food more than a hearty meatloaf with a side of mashed potatoes and your favorite veggie or salad.

meatloaf with sides — I usually fix this with a side of mashed potatoes and whatever green veggie we have on hand – this time it was fresh green beans from my mom’s garden!

This is truly one of the best cold weather meals – and my kids love it too!

My best tips for making meatloaf:

Use a square pan instead of a loaf pan – this spreads the meat out more to cook more thoroughly and ensure that there is a better sauce to meat ratio.
Don’t be afraid to mix with your hands! Using a spoon or spatula is just plain harder to mix the meat with the other ingredients. Get your fingers dirty – mixing by hand and getting all those flavors mashed together well makes better meatloaf!
If you are on a heart-conscious diet, mix 1 lb ground beef with 1 lb ground turkey
Do you know the easiest way to crush up crackers? Put 1/2 sleeve of soda crackers into a sandwich bag, seal it, and then bash against the counter with your fist to mash them all up.
Use fresh grated nutmeg for extra flavor in the sauce.

meatloaf pre-bake — Make sure to mix the meat up really well with the other ingredients to get all the flavors throughout the whole dish!

This recipe for the Best Meatloaf Ever is so easy and quick to prepare – and you can make it ahead of time to just pop in the oven when you get home from work, too!

Using 1.5-2 lbs of your favorite ground meat – I used 1 lb ground beef and 1 lb ground turkey when I made it – mix the meat with a chopped onion, salt, pepper, seasoned salt, cracker crumbs, milk, one egg, and tomato soup. Once you have all of those yummy flavors mixed together, pour the meat mixture into a baking pan. Wash your hands – they will be gooey!

meatloaf topping — I mix the sauce/topping with a fork to best break up the brown sugar and other dry ingredients into the ketchup.

Then, mix up the topping, and pour about 1/2 of it over the meat mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for an hour, serve with extra sauce and sides, and enjoy!

If you’re looking for other easy weeknight meal ideas, check out our Weekly Recipe Wins page, or go to these recipes:

Yield: 8-10 servings