Honest truth – I was thinking I wouldn’t have time to do a Turkey Tuesday post this week. I wasn’t prepared, I didn’t have a recipe in mind, I wasn’t even sure I had ingredients on hand.
In other words, welcome to Monday night at my house.
But then my blogger friend Katie over at Pinke Post happened to post a photo on her Facebook page of the bacon-wrapped meatloaf she was making, linking to a Pioneer Woman recipe. This got my wheels turning, and as I looked at that particular recipe, I decided I could do a bit of adapting with a turkey meatloaf recipe I’ve been wanting to try from Jennie-O Turkey Store. And praise be, I had all the ingredients in my kitchen!
Voila! The Best Ever Turkey Meatloaf was born.
I’m not sure if I was literally that hungry, or if the windy, cold weather today gave me a craving for comfort food, but this meatloaf was unbelievable. Tender, flavorful, wrapped in bacon … it’s just about the perfect meal on a cool, damp fall evening. I couldn’t wait until Teacher Man got home so I get his take – and as I suspected, he gave his hearty approval as well.
I actually don’t make meatloaf very often, which is weird since I am pretty much the queen of comfort food. I am about to change my tune, though, and put this into regular rotation this winter. It’s good stuff, I promise you.
Lara
Best Ever Turkey Meatloaf
- 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 2 cloves garlic minced (original recipe calls for 3 cloves but mine were big so I went with 2)
- 1 (20-ounce) package JENNIE-O® Lean Ground Turkey
- ½ cup breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup fresh parsley, minced
- ½ cup ketchup
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ¾ teaspoon salt, if desired
- 6-8 slices of bacon (I used Hormel Black Label Bacon because that’s what I had in my fridge; you could definitely switch it up with turkey bacon, too)
Sauce:
- 1-1/2 cup Ketchup
- 1/3 cup Brown Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Dry Mustard
- Tabasco To Taste
Heat oven to 350ºF. Melt butter in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Transfer mixture to a large bowl; cool 5 minutes.
Add ground turkey, breadcrumbs, egg, parsley, ¼ cup ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, pepper and salt, if desired to turkey mixture; mix well.
Form the mixture into a loaf shape on a broiler pan, which will allow any excess fat from the bacon to drain. (Genius tip I learned from The Pioneer Woman: line the bottom of the pan with foil to avoid a big mess!)
Make the sauce: add ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, and hot sauce in a mixing bowl. Stir together. Pour 1/3 of the mixture over the top of the bacon. Spread with a spoon.
Bake for 45 minutes, then pour another 1/3 of the sauce over the top. Bake for another 15 minutes or until the internal temperature of meatloaf is well-done, 165ºF as measured by a meat thermometer.
Slice and serve with remaining sauce, if desired.
Adapted from this Jennie-O Turkey Store Recipe
Sauce recipe (and bacon idea) adapted from this Pioneer Woman Recipe
I am part of Jennie-O’s Switch Circle of bloggers, but I do not get paid for my posts. I do receive some complimentary turkey products to try upon occasion. Opinions and topics are entirely my own.
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