Italian Meat Loaf
By criscrossqz
Whenever I ask Billy what he wants for dinner, it's either Sausage & Peppers or Meatloaf! I'm not a fan of most meatloaf because it's dry and tasteless ~ so I tweaked recipes and started doing it this way ~ VERY MOIST. Note: do it in a pan because it won't hold a shape if you do it on a baking sheet ... very healthy and low fat too (I use 96/4 ground sirloin)
- 3
Ingredients
- 1 to 1-1/2 lbs. VERY lean ground beef (I use 96/4)
- 1 egg
- 1 TB olive oil
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup fine dry Italian bread crumbs
- 1-2 TB crushed garlic
- 1-2 tsp oregano (minced, if fresh)
- 1 tsp minced fresh rosemary (use less if using powder)
- 2-3 fresh basil leaves, chopped fine (optional)
- 1 fresh rosemary sprig (optional) ~ to top meatloaf
- 2 tsp salt (preferably sea salt or Kosher salt)
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan and/or Romano cheese
- 1 can (about 15 oz) diced tomatoes with Italian seasonings,
- including the juice
Preparation
Step 1
Mix all ingredients together with your hands (reserving about 1/3 of the can of tomatoes and the sprig of rosemary). Pack into a sprayed loaf pan (about 9” size). Put remaining tomatoes and juice on top; place rosemary sprig on top of tomatoes. Cover lightly with foil and bake at 375 about 35-45 minutes ~ uncover and bake another 10-20 minutes (depends how big the loaf is). Let set in pan about 5 minutes; slice in pan and serve. Note: Don’t try to unmold it, or expect perfect slices. It’s too moist & tender to hold an exact shape or slice.