Recipe of the Week: Turkey Meatloaf with a Twist

If you're trying to lose weight, you don't have to sacrifice comfort food. The twist to this turkey meatloaf recipe by Dr. Jeanette Ryan is that it's low in fat and full of flavor. The brown sugar / ketchup glaze is so tasty your kids will never suspect how healthy the recipe is.

Ingredients:

1 medium onion, chopped fine
2 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 2 teaspoons)
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
salt
1/2 cup milk or plain yogurt
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves, or 1 teaspoon dried
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 pounds 93% lean ground turkey
1/3 cup minced fresh parsley leaves, or 5 tablespoons dried
1 1/3 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
4 tsp cider vinegar

How to Make It:

1.  Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine the onion, garlic, oil, and 1/8 tsp salt in a medium skillet. Cover and cook over medium-low heat, stirring often, until the onion has softened, 8 to 10 minutes; set aside to cool. In a medium bowl, whisk the milk, eggs, thyme, mustard, Worcestershire, hot sauce, pepper, and ¼ tsp salt together.

2. In a large bowl, mix the turkey, oats, parsley, cooked onion mixture, and egg mixture together with your hands until uniformly combined. Press the mixture together into a compact mass, then turn it out into a baking pan. Using your hands, press the meat into an evenly thick loaf about 2 inches tall and 1 inch smaller than the pan on all sides.

3. Stir the ketchup, sugar, and vinegar together, then brush half of the mixture evenly over the meatloaf. Bake the meatloaf for 45 minutes at 350 degrees.

4. Brush the meatloaf with the remaining ketchup glaze, and continue to bake until the center of the loaf registers 160 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, about 15 to 20 minutes longer. Cool at least 20 minutes before slicing into 1-inch-thick pieces.


Serves 8.

Tips From Dr. Ryan:

1. Do not use ground turkey breast meat (sometimes also labeled as 99% fat free) or the meatloaf will be very dry and grainy.

2. Instead of making a free-form loaf, you can use a 1 1/2 quart baking pan (4” x 12 2/3”) without the lid. Just be sure to check the temperature of the meatloaf with an instant-read thermometer.

2. Those with a gluten sensitivity can find substitutions here. 


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