Brenda, I've always hated meatloaf to until I came up with this recipe.

Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table

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My version of a meatloaf that I had in Magnolia's Restaurant in Charleston, SC. When we got home from vacation I set out to duplicate it because it was the first meatloaf I found that I actually liked. It was different because Magnolia's grilled the slices before serving and it didn't contain ketchup or tomato sauce like so many meatloaf recipes do.

1 1/2 pounds ground veal or mixture of beef and veal

1 small onion finely chopped
1 to 2 cloves of garlic
2 slices Italian/French Bread soaked in milk
2 eggs
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 Tablespoons chopped parsley
1 tablespoons of dried herbs,
(sage and Thyme, a small amount of rosemary
olive oil

Sauce

Green peppercorns
mushroons
1 to 2 cups chicken broth
. Saute onion in olive oil until soft. Add minced garlic and saute for
30 seconds. Do not brown garlic

Soak bread in milk

In a large bowl add meat, dijon mustard, chopped parsley, herbs, onions
and garlic and mix with hands. Squeeze bread to break up and add milk
and bread to mixture. Add eggs. Mix well and season with salt and
pepper. Saute a small piece to check for seasoning. Adjust to taste.

Shape meatloaf into a rectangle about 8 X 4 x 3 inches high and place
in a small roasting pan. Bake for 30 minutes and then add a small
amount of broth to the pan to prevent the bottom from becoming to
brown. Bake another 30 minutes and baste with the pan juices. Add
more broth if necessary. Cook another 10 minutes or until the meatloaf
is nicely browned.

Let cool and wrap in foil and refrigerate. Reserve pan juices.

Make a sauce by adding some green peppercorns and sauted mushrooms to
the pan juices.

Heat grill

Slice meatloaf into 1/2 inch thick slices and grill on both sides until
nicely marked and hot.

Serve with mashed potatoes

I have never known anybody NOT to like this recipe! It has received rave reviews on this forum since it was first posted several years ago. I always make double the sauce because it's so delicious - pour it all onto the meat. DO NOT overcook it - watch the time once the sauce has been added. It is delicious hot or cold. If you can't get sausage mince, just buy beef (you can use pork or lamb) link sausages and squeeze the contents out of the casings. This is one recipe I never fiddle with. Do NOT omit the coffee or you'll be really disappointed you did!

Barbecue Meatloaf
500g minced beef
500g sausage mince
1 cup breadcrumbs
2 onions, diced
1 tablespoon curry powder
1/2 cup water
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
1 egg, beaten
1 garlic clove, crushed (optional)
1/2 cup milk

Combine all meatloaf ingredients and mix until well combined. Shape into a loaf and put into greased baking pan. Bake 30 minutes at 180C.

Sauce:
1 onion, chopped very fine (optional)
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1/4 cup dry red wine or beef stock
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons vinegar
1 teaspoon instant coffee
1/4 cup brown sugar
30g butter
2 teaspoons lemon juice

Saute onions until golden and add all other ingredients. Bring slowly to the boil, lower heat and simmer about 5 minutes. After loaf has cooked for 30 minutes, pour the sauce over the meat, return to oven and bake 45 minutes more, basting often. The sauce goes well with ribs or chicken.

My family loves this recipe. It's very moist and it makes great sandwiches the next day.

Old-fashioned Meatloaf

Prep: 20 min., Cook: 7 min., Bake: 1 hr., Stand 10 min.

1 tablespoon butter
3 celery ribs, finely chopped
1/2 large onion, finely chopped
2 pounds lean ground beef
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, divided
1/2 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
1/3 cup ketchup
2 teaspoons Creole seasoning
1 teaspoon Greek seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon ketchup
Garnish: chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Melt butter in a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat; add celery and onion, and sauté 7 minutes or just until tender.
Stir together celery mixture, ground beef, 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, breadcrumbs, and next 5 ingredients in a large bowl. Shape into a 10- x 5-inch loaf; place on a lightly greased broiler rack. Place rack in an aluminum foil-lined broiler pan.

Bake at 350° for 45 minutes. Stir together remaining 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, tomato sauce, tomato paste, and 1 tablespoon ketchup until blended; pour evenly over meatloaf, and bake 10 to 15 more minutes or until no longer pink in center. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Note: For testing purposes only, we used Tony Chachere's Original Creole Seasoning and Cavender's All Purpose Greek Seasoning.

Yield: Makes 6 to 8 servings

Southern Living, APRIL 2005

This one isn't real meatloafy, if that's a word:
LEMON BARBECUED MEAT LOAVES (serves 6)
1 1/2 lbs ground chuck
4 slices dried bread, cubed
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup minced onion
1 egg, beaten
2 tsp seasoned salt
1/2 cup ketchup
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground cloves
6 thin lemon slices

Preheat oven to 350°. In a bowl, combine the meat, bread cubes, lemon juice, onion, egg & salt. Mix well & shape into 6 individual loaves. Arrange on a greased 9x13" baking dish. Bake 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, allspice & cloves. Cover the loaves w/the sauce & top each with a lemon slice. Bake 30 minutes longer, basting occasionally with sauce from the pan.~~Virginia Hospitality

We tried Paula's meatloaf recipe, which calls for a topping of ketchup, brown sugar, and mustard, which makes it taste sweet -- ok if you like sweet meat. But I said to DH, "You know, the best thing about meatloaf is the sandwiches the next day!" He agreed. Then I said, "And the next-best thing is the mashed potatoes!"
DH said, "But we didn't HAVE mashed potatoes."
He was right; we had squash casserole instead, but next time I'll remember what a real blue-plate special is like!
cheryva

First off, I never met a meatloaf I didn't like---until eating at a Ryan's Steakhouse one night. So this might not help you.

What is it that you don't like: the texture? taste? overall look? If it's the texture, try working the meat well with your hands to compress and tighten it. See if that helps. Taste? Well, any of the above ones sound good to me. Overall look? See below for one solution to that.

I don't use a precise recipe. But one trick you might try, which I learned from a New York chef, is to use oatmeal as the binding agent (instead of breadcrumbs, as most people do, or rice, as my Mama did). Then form the meat mixture into a loaf shape and top with barbecue sauce before baking.

For a fun touch, divide your meat mixture into two pieces, with two-thirds of the mix as one section. Form that into a loaf. Put two or three deep indentions in the surface, along the center line, and crack an egg into each one, being careful to not break the yolks. Then cover with the remaining 1/3 of the meat. Bake as usual.

What you wind up with is a meatloaf with hard-boiled eggs in the center. Each slice of the meatloaf will have a yellow & white "jewel" in the center.

This recipe was posted by SharonCB. I normally don't care much for meatloaf, but really liked this one. I substituted tomato sauce for the tomato soup because that is what I had. The notes at the bottom are hers.

WORLD'S BEST MEATLOAF
**************************************
1 1/2 cups soft bread crumbs - (tear up soft sliced bread - don't use fine crumbs as for breading)
1 1/2 lb ground meat (beef or pork & beef) (about 700 grams)
1 beaten egg
1 onion chopped fine
1/4 teasp dry Colman's (or similar) mustard
1/8 teasp ground sage
1/2 teasp ground thyme
1 1/2 teasp salt
1/4 teasp pepper
1/8 teasp nutmeg
1 chopped green pepper
1 tin condensed tomato soup (eg Campbells's)
3/4 cup grated celery
3/4 cup grated carrot
1) Mix meat with egg, add onion and seasonings and bread crumbs, greens and carrots
2) Add half the tin of soup and mix everything well. Turn into greased loaf pan or glass casserole dish 8.5 x 11 inches and pour remaining soup over the top, smoothing it evenly over all.
3) Bake 350 F (177 C) for 1 1/4 hours.
Source: American Pro Footbal Player's Wife in 1963
My Notes:
1) I use 'tomate frito' instead of the condensed soup. It's a rich fried Spanish tomato purée but otherwise condensed soup is good. Never use ketchup !
2) I usually double the amount of the ground spices with the exception of salt.

Wow! I had no idea you could make meatloaf so many ways! Most of the meatloaves I have tried were dry, chewy, and just overall not very appealing. My mom always makes hers with oatmeal, my sister makes hers with breadcrumbs. I, always wench when my husband ask for it! I never thought about using any other meat than hamburger, but now that I think about it, a combination of meats would probably be good. Looks like I have some recipes to try Saturday. We are having friends over and I am thinking.....MEATLOAF BUFFETT! (Hope I can stand it!) :)
By the way...I just love this forum! I have been using garden web for years now and I just discovered this forum about a month ago! Some people are just slow!

Here's mine:

Upside Down Meatloaf

1/2c brown sugar
1/2c catsup
1-1/2lb lean ground beef
3/4c milk
2 eggs, beaten
1-1/2tsp salt
1/4tsp pepper
1 small onion, grated
1c grated cheddar cheese
1/4tsp ground ginger
3/4c crushed cracker crumbs

Press brown sugar in bottom of loaf pan, spread catsup over sugar. Mix all remaining ingredients in large bowl and shape into loaf. Place on top of sugar/catsup in pan. Bake one hour at 350F. Invert on platter and serve.

Linda

My favorite is by Paul Prudhomme. It sounds really spicy, but isn't. I think the combination of the beef and pork is what keeps it moist.
CAJUN MEAT LOAF

SEASONING MIX:
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Ground cayenne pepper
1 tsp. Ground Black pepper
1/2 tsp. Ground White pepper
1/2 tsp. Ground cumin
1/2 tsp. Ground nutmeg

MAIN INGREDIENTS:
4 Tblsp. Unsalted butter
3/4 cup finely chopped onions
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped green onions
2 tsp. Minced garlic
1 Tblsp. Tabasco sauce
1 Tblsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup ketchup
1-1/2 lbs. Ground sirloin
1/2 lb. Ground pork
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup very fine bread crumbs

Combine seasoning mix ingredients in a small bowl and set aside. Melt butter in a 1-qt. Saucepan over medium heat. Add onions, celery, bell pepper, green onions, garlic, Tabasco, Worcestershire, and seasoning mix. Sauté until mixture starts sticking excessively, about 6 minutes, stirring occasionally and scraping the pan bottom well. Stir in the milk and ketchup. Continue cooking for about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and allow mixture to cool to room temperature.
Place ground beef and pork in an ungreased 13x9-inch pan. Add eggs, cooked vegetable mixture, and bread crumbs. REMOVE BAY LEAVES. Mix by hand until thoroughly combined. In the center of the pan, shape the mixture into a loaf. Bake, uncovered, at 350° F. for 25 minutes, then raise heat to 400° F. and continue baking until done, about 35 minutes longer. Serve immediately.

**This is best using both beef and pork, but can be made with beef only.**

From Paul PrudhommeÂs A Louisiana Kitchen.

I love Prudhomme's blackening seasoning! That's a deffinate recipe to try!
Thanks

The top one is my husband's favorite but I like the second one:
We love this one-it was given to me by a butcher in NY:
1 1/2 lbs ground beef
2 slices bread, soaked in water and squeezed out
8 oz tomato sauce
1 can chopped green chilies
1/2 chopped onion
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2T Tabasco` sauce
2 beaten eggs
Mix all together and bake at 350° for 1/1/2 hours. Let rest for 10 minutes before removing from loaf pan and slicing.
This was the first meatloaf I ever really liked:
Mix in the Bowl Meatloaf
1 1/2 lb ground beef
2/3c soft bread crumbs
1c milk
2 slightly beaten eggs
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1T dehydrated chopped onion
1/2 tsp sage
topping:
3T brown sugar
1/4 catsup
1 tsp mustard
1/4 tsp nutmeg
Mix first 8` ingredients and place in loaf pan. Combine remaining ingredients and pour over meatloaf. Bake for 1 hr at 400°
From the Officer's Wives Club Quick and Easy Dishes Cookbook
The sage really adds a nice flavor to this.

I can vouch for this one, from Eating Well:

Blue Ribbon Meatloaf

2 teaspoons canola oil
1 medium sweet onion, chopped (2 cups)
1 12-ounce bottle dark or amber beer
1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1 teaspoon dry mustard
3/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1 1/4 pounds lean ground beef
1 1/4 pounds lean ground turkey
1 cup fresh whole-wheat breadcrumbs
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 egg white, lightly beaten

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat an 8 1/2-by-4 1/2-inch loaf pan with cooking spray.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until translucent and starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Pour in beer and increase heat to high. Bring to a vigorous boil; cook until the liquid is quite syrupy and the mixture reduces to about 3/4 cup, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl. Stir in thyme, dry mustard, salt and pepper. Let cool for 10 minutes.
3. Add beef, turkey, breadcrumbs, parsley, beaten egg and egg white to the onion mixture. Mix thoroughly with clean hands and transfer to the prepared pan.
4. Bake the meatloaf until an instant-read thermometer registers 160° when inserted into the center, about 1 hour 20 minutes. Let rest for 5 minutes; drain accumulated liquid from the pan and slice. Serve hot or cold or in a sandwich.

Per serving: 275 calories; 13 g fat (4 g sat, 4 g mono); 104 mg cholesterol; 8 g carbohydrate; 29 g protein; 1 g fiber; 353 mg sodium.

Here is one that is delicious and moist and I am NOT a fan of Cream Of Mushroom soup! It makes great sandwiches with leftovers, too.

Beef and Mushroom Meatloaf

2 lbs. lean ground beef
3/4 cup cream of mushroom soup
2/3 cup plan dried bread crumbs
2 eggs
1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp. herbes de Provence
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine beef, soup, bread crumbs, eggs, Parmesan, herbes de Provence and pepper. With a wooden spoon mix until just blended. Spoon meat mixture into a 10-inch pie pan and gently press it into pan.
Bake meatloaf until firm to touch in center, 50-60 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting into wedges.
****I added 2 very finely minced shallots and used a casserole dish instead of a pie plate.

MsP...I can say that SharonCB's World's Best Meatloaf made a convert out of me..60+ years into my life. I use Goya Sofrito in place of the soup.

We like that flavor and if out of it, I'll just puree a bit of any tomato/chile based salsa. Maureen

There are so many good recipes here I won't post mine but I will tell you what makes mine so good. I cook it in my crockpot and it is so tender. My husband never liked anybody's meatloaf until I cooked it this way.

Another trick is to take a saucer and place on the bottom of the crockpot with aluminum foil crumpled around the sides of the sauce. This lets the fat run to the bottom of the pot. Then, tear a piece long enough to go from the outside of one side, down and over the bottom and up the other side. This gives you a great way of picking the meatloaf up out of the crock pot without tearing it up or burning your hands. I do this a lot with other foods or meats, too.

Maureen - I use the same Sofrito when I make Sharon's meatloaf. It's el-Yummo!