Grandma's Meatloaf
It's not "Grandma's Meatloaf" to be cutesy, it really did come from my grandma, given to my mom on an old recipe card that she still has in her little recipe card box (you know, like they did in the days when you couldn't just Google what you wanted to eat and have ten different recipe options instantly).
I'm making a few changes to this one, namely, we like to slather some ketchup and BBQ sauce on the top and let it broil a few minutes at the end because YUM. It's ok. I don't think Grandma will mind.
Grandma's Meatloaf
Ingredients-
3 lbs ground beef
3/4 c. breadcrumbs
2 egg
Granulated garlic
Granulated onion
1/2 cup BBQ sauce or gravy
Splash of Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper
(for topping)
equal parts BBQ sauce and ketchup
Directions-
Preheat oven to 350ยบ.
Mix all ingredients except toppings together in a bowl with your hand, or in a stand mixer with paddle attachment.
Form meatloaf into a solid round shape and place in a Dutch oven.
Bake for about 45-60 minutes
Mix together equal parts ketchup and BBQ sauce.
When the meatloaf is done, pour or spread the topping onto the meatloaf. Remove the lid of the Dutch oven and broil until the topping is beginning to bubble and caramelize.
Notes-
I've always baked my meatloaf in a Dutch oven, but my mom always baked hers in an uncovered loaf pan, so you can use whatever you have on hand.
Meatballs are a great way to get in organ meat! There are several ways to do this; you can empty desiccated liver pills into the mixture. You can freeze liver that has been put through the food-processor in an ice cube tray and add it, defrosted. You can also freeze organ meats, cooked and whole, and grate them into food.
On Thanksgiving, we usually make a huge batch of gravy, using the turkey giblets and drippings. We have a ton left over, so we freeze it in little pucks by pouring it into a muffin tin until frozen, then keeping them in a bag. I like to defrost a couple of these to mix in to my meatloaf. If I don't have any gravy, I will use BBQ sauce instead.
For a gluten-free version, you can sub in oats/ground oats for breadcrumbs.