leaner & cleaner meatloaf + something you should know!!

another recipe for those ground turkey (or lean beef) logs. i have never thought of meatloaf as a healthy dish, ever. it even sounds like anything but healthy. every now and then i want it though, so every now and then i make it. i know you'll enjoy and appreciate this flavorful, lighter, healthier, yet filling recipe. lean turkey meat loaf

the stuff:

meatloaf:

1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 minced yellow onion
1 med shallot or 2 cloves of garlic
3 slices of double fiber wheat bread
2 lbs of ground turkey 97% or 99% lean (i used one of each)
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
3 tbsp liquid aminos
freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
2 whole eggs, 1/2 cup egg whites
few squirts of low sodium worcestershire sauce

sauce:

1-1/2 cup low carb ketchup
1/4 cup coconut crystals
1 teaspoon dry mustard or yellow mustard
sriracha chili sauce to taste

do this:

pre-heat your oven right now before you forget @ 350 deg.
soak the bread in the milk for a minute or two.
chop up the shallots and/or garlic, yellow onion, parsley, and cilantro.
in a huge bowl, throw everything in (soaked bread, veggies, meat, eggs, seasonings).
make sure those hands are scrubbed clean, then dive on in and mix and mold.

i stuck with the boring, classic loaf shape and put it on my broil/grill pan. i'll be more adventurous next time.

as you can see, i like my veggies nice and chunky. you can dice/mince them if that's too big for your liking.

top the loaf with only half the sauce for now, and let it bake for 45 minutes. that'll produce this:

go ahead and sauce it one more time, and pop it back in the for last 15.

i fished out my meat thermometer and stuck it right in the center of the loaf- that little dial shot up so fast!! it was definitely overdone and i worried that it might be dry as i was already using lean meat.

nope, it was still juicy, flavorful, and moist. even still, i suggest you check the temp after about 35 minutes in.

2 lbs makes plenty- we ate off this thing for about 3 days for sure. tasted better and better each time.

instead of the usual mashed potatoes and peas, i did cabbage. cabbage is a nutritious veggie that is cheap and produces A LOT. it doesn't wilt down so much like spinach does.

i sliced up 1 yellow onion, 1 green bell pepper, and a few slices of bacon for flavor (2-3). before topping the pot and letting it simmer on med-low for about 20 minutes, i pour in about 1/2 - 1 cup of low-sodium chicken broth to help get the steaming process going. i like my cabbage with a little crunch to it, but you'll just have to taste test it along the way. oh don't forget to add fresh cracked black pepper and as little salt as necessary. i was able to get 12 generous slices out of the loaf.

stats per serving:

cals: 140 (w/out sauce)

165 (w/ sauce)

fat: 1.6g

protein: 6g

fiber: 1g

last thing i HAD to share! no matter how much i love a product, i never trust their (or anybody's) portion sizes. i was getting snacks ready for the week and although i didn't want to lol, i put that chocolate drizzled popcorn to the test....i just had to know. the bags says 1.5 cups is one serving, and that there are 6 servings total in the bag. that equals, yes, 9 cups of popcorn.

um...

...

i only managed to scoop out 6 cups. barely. more like 5 and 3/4th.

to be honest, i was expecting the exact opposite so i could tell you to be careful about taking in WAY MORE cals than what the label actually says!!!

...not this.

i don't know whether to be happy there are 400+ cals less than i anticipated in the entire bag, or to write a letter to Popcorn, Indiana about my 3 missing cups!! regardless, a lesson was learned. read the label and do your own measurements.