Meatloaf. That’s it…no fancy adjectives or list of specialized ingredients. Because in my house, there is only one meatloaf–and heaven help the cook who wants to change anything about the recipe!

Growing up I never understood why meatloaf was the butt of late night or school lunch jokes (until I got to junior high and tasted the ersatz “meatloaf” that they served in the cafeteria!). I loved it enough to request it for my birthday dinner. In fact, even today I generally double the recipe so that there will be plenty of leftovers….and chances are there will be a container in the refrigerator with a post-it note, staking someone’s claim for tomorrow’s lunch.

Eat the last piece of meatloaf at your own peril!

It does make a killer sandwich. Soft white bread, mayo, maybe some lettuce if you’re feeling fancy. Ok, so this wasn’t a planned photo. It falls more into the category of “mocking the husband for the absurd size of his manly sandwich”. But you get the idea!

What makes this meatloaf so beloved? I think it’s partly the texture (everything but the meat is mixed together in the blender and the combination of ground meats plus buttermilk make it very tender), but the main attraction is the glaze on top. There has to be plenty of sauce!

And the last bit of serendipity: the oven temperature and timing just happen to align with the correct settings for baked potatoes. Just saying.

Meatloaf photo tutorial

Nothing exotic here, but a couple of small tweaks make an improved meatloaf: buttermilk (you can substitute regular milk if buttermilk is not available) and meatloaf mix (a blend of ground beef, pork and veal). You can use 85% ground beef, if that is what is available. Just don’t use anything too lean, to avoid a dry meatloaf.

The secret to the perfect texture is mixing everything but the ground meat in the blender.

It may seem like a lot of liquid, but mix gently until it is thoroughly combined with the meat. Transfer the mixture to a 8×5″ loaf pan.

For the sauce, just whisk all of the ingredients together and spread on top of the prepared meatloaf

Have you tried this recipe? Have a question or a request? Leave a note in the comments!

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Meatloaf

A tender, smooth textured meatloaf with a sweet and tangy tomato glaze

Ingredients

• 1 C buttermilk
• 2/3 C dry breadcrumbs
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 C onion
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp dry sage
• 1 1/2 lb meatloaf mix
• 3 T brown sugar
• 1/2 C ketchup
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp dry mustard

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350.

  Combine buttermilk, breadcrumbs, egg, onion, salt and sage in blender. Blend until completely smooth.

  Stir buttermilk mixture into ground meat until thoroughly combined. Transfer to 8×5″ loaf pan.
• For glaze: whisk together brown sugar, ketchup, nutmeg and dry mustard. Spread on top of meatloaf mixture.
• Bake meatloaf at 350 for 50 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Notes

Meatloaf mix is a combination of ground beef, pork and veal. If it is unavailable, substitute 85% lean ground beef, or a mixture of beef and pork.

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