There are so many versions of this old school dinner out there in recipe books, online and in Pinterestland, but the only one I use comes from my Betty Crocker cookbook. Yep, it’s straight from the pages of an old fashioned cookbook that’s been around for decades. As you can see, my page is torn and tattered from use.
I always thought this nostalgic dish was spelled “Meatloaf,” but according to Betty, she spells it using two words – “Meat Loaf.” Huh. For my clan I had to double the recipe to make two pans, but the recipe below is for one loaf pan and serves about six.
So why the twist? My people love when I split the meat mixture in half and add a layer of cheese in the middle. Then I top the cheese with the remaining mixture. It’s not low fat, but oh, so good!
Betty Crocker’s Meat Loaf
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 teaspoon dried sage
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 clove garlic, minced (or if you’re like me, a tablespoon of jarred garlic)
1 large egg
1/2 cup dried breadcrumbs
1/2 onion, chopped
Ketchup (for the top)
Optional – 4 slices of cheese, any type
Steps:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine all of the ingredients except the ketchup.
3. Place mixture in pan, or split it in half and add the cheese – see above
4. Top with ketchup.
5. Place pan in oven and bake for an hour to an hour and 15 minutes, depending on oven.
I also like to place potatoes in the oven to bake while the meatloaf is cooking.
There are two ingredients in this version that make it special….ground sage and ground mustard. I’m not sure what it is, but the sage especially gives it a nice taste.
Meatloaf is tricky to photograph. This was the best image I could get without it looking like a big blob on the plate. That, and my crew was so ready to eat they could hardly wait until I was done snapping photos.
I love comfort food. Even though spring is upon us, there is nothing that says comfort and cozy like a meal like this. It was just what we needed on a relaxed weekend evening.
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