MEAT LOAF MEALS FOR WINTER

Meat loaves, often considered one of our inexpensive main meal dishes, can become a gourmet’s delight as you work a little “magic’ with the ingredients. You can make these from a variety of ground meats…beef, turkey, chicken, veal and pork or a combination. However, beef is used most frequently.

Many Variations

Other variations include, instead of the usual bread or cracker crumbs to give meat loaf body, uncooked rolled oats, cooked rice, or ready-to-eat cereals such as crushed corn flakes.

Instead of milk for liquid, use canned tomato soup or sauce, canned vegetable soup, cream sauce or soup, gravy, or sour cream.

Seasonings

& Additional Ingredients

A great variety of seasonings will give meat loaves a different flavor. Those such as Worcestershire sauce, gravy seasoning, Italian seasoning, sage or poultry seasoning (especially when using ground turkey or chicken and layering it with stuffing) can vary your meat loaf recipes.

Add any of the following to your meat loaf to change the taste or add nourishment:

* 1/2 to 1 cup shredded cheese

* 1/2 to 1 cup sliced mushrooms

* 1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped green pepper

* 1/4 cup chopped pimento

* 1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped celery

* 1/4 cup chopped green or ripe olives

* 1/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

* 1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped onion

Fancy Meat Loaves

Make fancier meat loaves by baking them in a ring or mold. Also, you can cover the loaf with a crust of mashed potatoes or flaky pastry.

A tasty meat loaf once served me was made by the cook putting a layer of bread stuffing between two layers of ground beef meat loaf mixture. She baked this in a loaf pan and served with tomato sauce to spoon over it.

Meat Loaf With Potato Topping – Bake your favorite meat loaf as usual. Turn it from the pan onto a baking dish. Then cover well with approximately 2 cups seasoned mashed potatoes. Brush with butter and sprinkle lightly with shredded cheese and paprika.

Bake at 400 degrees F. about 20 minutes, until the potatoes are golden brown.

Hamburger Roll-Ups – a meat loaf variation. Mix 1 package of stuffing mix as directed. Stir into 1 pound hamburger 1 tablespoon catsup, 1 tablespoon mustard, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, pinch of onion salt, salt and pepper, as desired, 1/4 cup evaporated milk or regular milk. Make 6 patties. Then put a spoonful of stuffing in the middle of the patties. Roll over and seal edges.

Pour 1 can mushroom soup over the rolls. (This can be low fat and/or low sodium soup, if you prefer.) Bake at 350 degrees F. for 45 minutes, or until roll-ups are done.

(Mary Emma Allen researches and writes from her woodland NH home.)

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