Ground beef (we are lucky enough to grow our own so it is really, really lean)
Crushed crackers, Ritz or Keebler Club
An egg or two, enough to moisten the crackers Diced garlic clove or a goodly sprinkle of garlic powder
Crushed black pepper
A little grated parmesan cheese

Mix it all by hand in that same rectangular dish and shape into loaf.
Then dump a can of Campbell's creme of mushrooms on top (barbaric, but good)
And a can or two of mushroom stems and pieces or fresh ones if you have them
Sprinkle with a little more garlic and parmesan.
Bake with the foil on top
Good stuff, although I don't think your gout will like it much

That was cream of mushroom soup, not cream of mushrooms. Can't type this early in the morning

Oatmeal instead of bread. You can pat yourself on the back for being "healthier" too.

A bit of garlic powder. A bit of ground red pepper. Anywhere from enough to "brighten" the flavor to enough to make it nearly spicy.

Deb is the meatloaf zen master here, so beyond that I will defer to her. Well, besides it's a must to mix ketchup into the meatloaf, and if not that, maybe something like tomato paste or soup.

Worcestershire sauce, diced onion, garlic powder, egg, breadcrumbs, a splash of milk, sea salt and ground pepper. I leave out the ketchup and let people use it on their own if they like. My husband uses hot sauce on top of his.

Oh, and I use ground turkey instead of ground beef. It’s not the same. It took a long time for me to get used to it. If anyone is going to try turkey, I cannot stress the Worcestershire sauce enough. It makes a huge difference.

I like the oatmeal idea. I am going to try that.

Ground beef, 2 eggs, salt & pepper, garlic powder, chopped onions, and a packet of unflavored gelatin dissolved in 1/2 cup of hot V-8 juice.
For filler, a mixture of mashed potato flakes and oatmeal.

The gelatin makes the moistest, most toothsome meatloaf you've ever had.

I forgot about the onions. Yes, chopped onions are a must (but with restraint). Ketchup, like salt and pepper, I always feel it's better to leave to the discretion of the "eater" to add on the plate.

Charity: Milk? Interesting...

I see a lot of you use garlic. I tend to have too heavy a hand with garlic.

The best meatloaf I ever had was made with ground turkey. Hard to explain the flavor, but I ate four slabs of the stuff.

What I grew up on: a pack of Lipton's onion soup mix, ketchup, worstershire, egg, breadcrumbs or oatmeal, and I THINK a splash of milk (haven't made it in awhile). Ketchup on the side.

What I make now: A box of frozen spinach, 1/2 C of tomato sauce, italian seasoning, bread crumbs, shredded mozzarella. Top with 1/2C tomato sauce mixed with 1/4C grated parmesan. Different but still good.

Soak the breadcrumbs, oatmeal, or crushed crackers in a bit of milk. Then when you're ready to add it to the meat, squeeze out the excess liquid. Helps the mix to stick together better.

Instead of adding ketchup to the mix, try BBQ sauce. I agree with the addition of Worchestershire sauce as well.

Also, I will sometimes add a bit of shredded cheddar cheese for a tasty bonus.

1/2 lb ea ground beef and pork sausage. 1 egg, 3 shredded wheat biscquits crushed fine, 1/2 med onion diced fine, 1 rib celery diced fine. 1/4 C. evap milk or half and half. Heavy pinch Kosher salt, 1/2 tsp freshly cracked pepper 1 to 1 1/2 tsp sage or poultry seasoning. Saute onion & celery until onion is transparent, then mix all ingredients very well by hand, get in there with it, enjoy. If you like, add some diced bell pepper or canned mild chilis, and/or some sauteed mushrooms. Press into a greased loaf pan and bake 45min to an hour. Let cool for at least half an hour before serving. The meatloaf seasoning act of 1937 requires at least 12 oz of ketchup be available to each person at the table. Best served with baked or mashed potatoes and either corn or green beans. I always make two because one will not yield enough left over for sandwiches.

This is kind of a Lutheran style recipe. It's a benchmark of opportunity for creativity. Go for it, there's a trillion tons of ground beef out there needing some help.

Gerry N.

Jeff, since you like to roast the potatoes, you can throw some carrots in there too to roast and that will ease your vegetable-eating conscience.

This was a great post. I can't wait to try some of these ideas.

Two tablespoons of sriracha sauce. We're putting two tablespoons of sriracha sauce into just about everything. Adds something that a few dashes of concentrated hot sauce doesn't.

A little jar of chopped green olives. This is something the wee wifey does for some reason I don't understand, and in fact I wind up eating around them after a while, but I get to use the juice for a dirty martini.

Ground turkey was mentioned above. Back when the monthly Sharefood carton was helping to stave off hunger for us, they were including a sagey turkey sausage. Combining it with a box of stuffing mix and a chopped onion made a great casserole.

Ggrowing up, my stepmom would throw a small jar of salsa (mild or medium) into her meatloaf mix. Great stuff.

I tend to have too heavy a hand with garlic.

There is no such thing. Heh.

Meatloaf zen master? Not really. Jay described what I do pretty well.

I am so looking forward to getting the oven fixed so that I can try some of these ideas...

Two lbs. of 85% lean or leaner ground beef
One package of Lipton Onion Soup mix
1/2 cup of bread crumbs, seasoned or unseasoned.
1 extra large egg
1/2 jar of Heinz mushroom gravy

Mix the hamburger, about 2/3rds of the contents of the Lipton Onion Soup mix and the bread crumbs. (Don't use the whole package.) Add the egg, then the 1/2 jar of mushroom gravy. Mix until all ingredients are thorougly distributed.

Form a loaf shape at least 3" high in a pyrex baking dish. Spread the remaining 1/2 jar of mushroom gravy over the top of the loaf. Place in a 375º oven for approximately 90 minutes. Remove from oven & let cool for 5-10 minutes before cutting.

This is a remarkably simple and very tasty meatloaf.

Sometimes I like to use a bit of salsa or Rotel in the meatloaf, and cornmeal or crushed nachos instead of bread crumbs; it gives it an interesting Mexican flavor. Serve with Mexican rice.
I also like using a bit of lean ground lamb or pork with Italian or Greek seasonings for a Mediterranean meatloaf; serve with an appropriate pasta.

My mom's secret ingredient for meatloaf is a bit of ground horseradish, from a jar. I've stayed with that, use garlic too.

For many years I lived in a very small apt. w/no kitchen. A double hot plate and a toaster oven were pretty limiting; then my folks gave me an inexpensive microwave. (Itwas cheap because it was Korean-made and used a mechanical dial timer - no digital stuff, but it was big. Lasted 16 yrs., too!)

Found the trick to micro-loaf in a book by Marjory Kreschollek,"Goof=Proof Microwaving", maybe? You shape it in a ring (bundt) pan, but cook it on grooved plastic meat rack loosely coveredw/wax paper, about 7-8 min./lb. Worked perfectly for me on dozens of tries.

We never make the same meatloaf twice in a row.

Substitute soy sauce for the worchestershire and chow mein noodles for the crackers/bread.

Add taco seasoning mix and crushed corn chips or tortilla chips instead to the mix.

Someone already mentioned Italian style.

Make your meatloaf mix like you would your favorite hamburgers for grilling, then divide in half. Make a bottom "plank" of meat, then layer on some good hot dogs, chili sauce and shredded cheese, then top with the rest of the meatloaf mix. Seal the edges together so the chili dog mix is hidden inside. Serve this with fries or onion rings and green salad.