Not your Grandma's Meatloaf

Don't get me wrong.  I'm dissing anyone's grandma.  I've got a pretty amazing Grandma myself.  My mom's one heck of a Grandma, too.  And while I'm at it...so is my mother-in-law, and my Grandma-in-laws.  But...I'm thinking that they don't make meatloaf quite like this. (Disclaimer: I haven't tasted all of their meatloafs.  If I had, I'm sure they would be very good...but not quite like this.)

This meatloaf packs one heck of flavor punch.  Also included are a smack a fiber and a jab of veggies.

Had it with the stupid faux-boxing lingo?  Yeah, me too.

Here it is:

Prep work:
Grind the oatmeal in the blender to make a fine crumb.  Go ahead and throw in some flax seed. Mmmmmmm....fiber.  Much better than saltines.

Finely shred two carrots and chop up one bell peper and a half an onion.  Saute this in whatever you've got (I didn't want calories, so I used cooking spray.  Olive oil would probably taste better, though.  But, you gotta do what you gotta do.) for about 3 - 5 minutes, until the onions are translucent. Along with the veggies, add some minced garlic, salt and pepper to taste.

Dump everything into a bowl and mix thoroughly.  I like to use my hands for this.  But not my bare hands.  It's not that I find it too icky, it just gets too cold.  I wear rubber gloves.  The kind doctors wear.  They make me feel important.  Ok, not really...but they do make my hands less cold and it's much quicker than mixing with a spoon.

Shape into a loaf.  I like my meatloaf shaped into a loaf on an edged cookie sheet/jelly-roll pan.  My husband likes his in a loaf pan.  If I make the meatloaf in the loaf pan, he does the dishes.  I'm not stupid.

Bake at 375 for 45 mins to an hour, or until meat thermometer reads 150.  Let it rest for about 10 minutes.  If you use a loaf pan, it will still be a pain in the neck to get out of the pan.  This is why I prefer a loaf on a cookie sheet.  I haven't tried it before, but I've seen Paula Dean (not in person...through the TV, it's not like I'm BFFs with PD) put a couple slices of bread under her loaf to soak up the grease.  Maybe I'll try that next time.  Or, you try it and let me know how it goes.

This is FABULOUS with baked sweet potatoes and broccoli.  Bake the potatoes at the same temp for the same time as the meatloaf.  PLEASE put a foil covered cookie sheet under you potatoes so you don't have oooey-gooey potato juice flooding your oven.

NOT YOUR GRANDMA'S MEATLOAF:
1 C. oatmeal, ground into a fine crumb
1 T. ground flaxseed
2 carrots, finely shredded
1/2 onion, finely diced
1 bell pepper (any color/combination of colors), finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
salt
pepper
1 lb lean ground turkey
1 lb lean ground beef
8 oz can tomato puree
1 egg
1 T. Worchestershire sauce
1 T. dried parsely

Preheat oven to 375.

Grind oatmeal and flaxseed in food processor or blender.

Saute carrots, onion, pepper, garlic until onions are translucent (about 3 - 5 minutes).

Add all ingredients to a large mixing bowl and combine well.

Form into loaf and bake 45 - 60 minutes; until 150 degrees.