Aren't I a devious one? I take what should be a meat and more meat dish and turn it into a veritable kitchen garden all the while sitting on the dinner table with a slightly knowing smile as my little ones ooh and aah over this meat loaf!
Yay for devious moms!
This is one of those other American dishes that I had never even heard of before landing on American shores. And like most I began with the cream of mushroom soup rendition with loads of grease leaking from its edges.
Delightful as it was to taste it did two things - my Mom who was visiting that time locked her self into her bedroom claiming she wasn't hungry that evening leading to a showdown the next morning (yes, the meatloaf caused a domestic dispute) and secondly it went against my "GOOD FOOD" motto - you know, the no canned, no preservatives and no artificial flavors please, thank you very much, motto.
And so began the hunt for good meatloaf. The journey that involved reading just about everyone elses recipes, endless magazine clippings and the back of every breadcrumb box I could lay hands on, finally rests here.
And it is here to stay.
Because this does everything I think a good meatloaf should do - packs great flavor, is light & refreshing to eat, non-greasy and believe it or not, low fat as meatloaves go.
The addition of shredded up vegetables does wonders to keep the meatloaf moist but also adds that light, refreshing taste that we have come to love.
And when I think of all that good nuitrition that we're gobbling up while loving every mouthful, I say, "What's not to love"?
Gather the ingredients -
For the Meatloaves : ground beef - very lean, 93/7 preferably, steel cut or instant oats, small carrots, small yellow onion, medium zucchini, cayenne pepper, Sriracha chili sauce, granulated garlic powder, granulated onion, Dijon mustard, salt, tomato paste and egg
Topping : tomato paste, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar and Dijon mustard
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Oats - Place in a bowl and cover with boiling hot water. Set aside to soften while you prepare the remaining ingredients. This step applies only to steel cut oats and not instant oats. Use instant oats directly into the meat mixture.
Zucchini - Cut into chunks and chop till very fine in a mini-food processor or chopper.
Remove to a sieve placed over a bowl. Press down into the sieve with clean hands to remove all excess water from the zucchini.
Empty the chopping bowl you used for the zucchini. Rinse, dry and in the same bowl prepare the other ingredients.
Onion - Peel the onion discarding skins and ends. Place in a mini-chopper or food processor.
Carrots- Peel and cut into chunks. Place in a mini-chopper or food processor along with the onions. Grate the carrots nstead if you don't like biting into tender-crunchy bits in the meat loaf.
Chop the onions and carrots together till fine.
In a large mixing bowl, place the ground beef. To this add the chopped vegetables and massage together with clean hands till combined.
In a clean sieve drain the oats, and press down removing all excess water from the oats. Add the drained oats to the meat.
Now add all the spices - the cayenne pepper, Sriracha chili sauce, granulated garlic powder, granulated onion, Dijon mustard, salt and tomato paste.
Add a beaten egg, discarding shell. Once again massage together so the ingredients are well combined.
I prefer to fix these as mini loaves so I can adjust the serving size based on the group.
Use a non-stick baking tray and using clean hands form into 5-6 mini-loaves.
Bake for 25 minutes. Meanwhile begin working on the topping.
In a small saucepan over low heat, combine the remaining tomato paste, brown sugar, vinegar, Dijon mustard and water.
Bring to a simmer and remove from heat to set aside till ready to use.
After meatloaf has cooked for the 25 minutes, remove from oven.
Increase the oven temperature to 400 deg F.
Return to oven and bake for another 25 minutes. Rest for 5-10 minutes before serving with vegetables and mashed potatoes on the side.
Incredibly flavorful like a bite into spring with each bite, this meatloaf is moist as it is refreshing. The sweetness from the topping with the slight punch from dijon mustard & sriracha is just the kick it needs.
This makes an appearance on our table again and again and I hope it shows up on yours as well!
Recipe for
Garden Mini-Meatloaves with Dijon-Tomato Tangy Topping
Preparation time - 15 minutes
Baking time - 50 minutes
Serves 4-6
Shopping List -
1 1/2 pounds ground beef - very lean, 93/7 preferably
1/2 cup steel cut or instant oats
2 small carrots
1 small yellow onion
1 medium zucchini
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp Sriracha chili sauce
1-1/2 tbs granulated garlic powder
1 tbs granulated onion
1-1/2 tbs Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon salt
2 tbs from 6 oz can tomato paste
1 egg
Dijon-Tomato Tangy Topping
remiander of 6 oz can tomato paste
2 tbs brown sugar
2 tbs apple cider vinegar
2 tbs Dijon mustard
Preparation -
Oats - Place in a bowl and cover with boiling hot water. Set aside to soften while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
Zucchini - Cut into chunks and in the same but emptied chopping bowl, chop till fine. Remove to a sieve placed over a bowl. Press down into the sieve with clean hands to remove all excess water from the zucchini.
Onion - Peel the onion discarding skins and ends. Place in a mini-chopper or food processor.
Carrots- Peel and cut into chunks. Place in a mini-chopper or food processor along with the onions.
Chop the onions and carrots together till fine.
Method -
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
In a large mixing bowl, place the ground beef. To this add the chopped vegetables and massage together with clean hands till combined.
In a clean sieve drain the oats, and press down removing all excess water from the oats. Add the drained oats to the meat.
Now add all the spices - the cayenne pepper, Sriracha chili sauce, granulated garlic powder, granulated onion, Dijon mustard, salt and tomato paste.
Add a beaten egg, discarding shell. Once again massage together so the ingredients are well combined.
I prefer to fix these as mini loaves so I can adjust the serving size based on the group. Use a non-stick baking tray and using clean hands form into 5-6 mini-loaves.
Bake for 25 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small saucepan over low heat, combine the remaining tomato paste, brown sugar, vinegar, Dijon mustard and water.
Bring to a simmer and remove from heat to set aside til ready to use.
After meatloaf has cooked for the 25 minutes, remove from oven and with a spoon smear sauce over the top of the meatloaves.
Increase the oven temperature to 400 deg F.
Return to oven and bake for another 25 minutes.
Rest for 5-10 minutes before serving with vegetables and mashed potatoes on the side.
Enjoy!
