Gyro Meat Loaf with Tzatziki Sauce

I have been wanting meat loaf for a few weeks, and found this recipe.  D said he would make it.
It was supposed to be made with store-bought Tzatziki Sauce, but it was quicker to just make it then go hunt however many stores to find it.

It was lamb with spinach and cheese.  How could it be bad?  We had it with Greek Potatoes (2 baking potatoes, sauteed with Greek Seasoning, salt, and pepper, and some vinegar.

We will have again.

Gyro Meat Loaf with Tzatziki Sauce

A spin on a classic meat loaf, I love this because I can sneak spinach in on my meat-and-potatoes family. Serve it with Greek-style potatoes or a Greek salad. I also get to make a whole other meal the next night with the leftovers—gyros.

Photo by ALB

Adapted from A Taste of Home
TOTAL TIME: Prep: 20 min.; Bake: 55 min. + standing
MAKES: 8 servings

Ingredients

Sauce:
Adapted from allrecipes.com

1 (8 ounce) containers plain yogurt
1 cucumbers - peeled, seeded and diced
1 tablespoons olive oil
3 TBSP lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
6 cloves garlic, peeled

Adapted from A Taste of Home
Meat Loaf
1 package (10 ounces) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 cup dry bread crumbs
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1-1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 pounds ground lamb
1 pounds ground beef, 90/10
1 cup refrigerated tzatziki sauce

Directions 
In a food processor or blender, combine yogurt, cucumber, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper, dill and garlic. Process until well-combined. Transfer to a separate dish, cover and refrigerate for at least one hour for best flavor.

Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, combine the first (meat loaf) eight ingredients. Crumble lamb/beef over mixture and mix well. Shape into a loaf and place in a greased 11x7-in. baking dish.

Bake, uncovered, 55-60 minutes or until no pink remains and a thermometer reads 160°. Let stand 15 minutes before slicing. Serve with tzatziki sauce.

Freeze option: Securely wrap and freeze cooled meat loaf in plastic wrap and foil. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Unwrap meat loaf; reheat on a greased shallow baking pan in a preheated 350° oven until a thermometer inserted in center reads 165°. Yield: 8 servings.

Chicken Parmesan Meatloaf

I saw this on my friend Lisa's Pinterest page.  It looked pretty good.  I showed to D and he said ok.  So we both went for a run after work, except he did his outside by the house and I did mine at the gym near my work.  I finished and my usual route home said it would take 2 hours.  Driving 10 miles out of my way, would reduce the time to 75 minutes.  So driving across the northwest suburbs of Atlanta, to get downtown, I finally got home to a homemade dinner that was hot.

Yay.  This tasted like Chicken Meatballs.  Really good. D said it would be good on pizza.  We both wanted more.  But we didn't.  We would have again.

We had with Broccoli and plain pasta.

Chicken Parmesan Meatloaf

Photo by ALB

From What's Cookin, Chicago?

Ingredients
1 lb ground chicken (ground turkey can be substituted)
1 egg
1/4 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1-2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 small onion, grated
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup pasta sauce (homemade or store bought)
1/2 cup shredded Italian cheese blend
minced parsley for garnish

Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a loaf pan with cooking spray, set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the ground chicken, egg, breadcrumbs, thyme, oregano, basil, garlic, onion, salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese. To not over handle the mixture otherwise it will get tough. Place the mixture in the greased loaf pan and form into a loaf. Top the meatloaf with pasta sauce.

Place filled loaf pan on a baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven for 40-45 minutes. Remove the meatloaf from the oven and sprinkle the top with the remaining shredded cheese. Place the meatloaf back in the oven and bake until the cheese is melted.

Remove the meatloaf from the oven and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before serving/slicing. Garnish with parsley if desired.

Nutritional Information from My Fitness Pal
Calories: 348; Total Fat: 17 g; Saturated Fat: 7 g; Monounsaturated Fat: 1 g; Polyunsaturated Fat: 0 g; Trans Fat: 0 g; Cholesterol: 160 g; Sodium: 853 mg; Potassium: 258 mg; Total Carbohydrate: 12g; Dietary Fiber: 1g; Sugars: 2 g; Protein: 34 g

Ingredients used to Calculate NI
1.0 container (16 oz raw ea.) Fresh Ground Chicken, Perdue: Calories: 720
1.0 Large Egg, Sunny Meadow: Calories: 70
0.25 cup(s) Bread Crumbs Plain, Progresso: Calories: 110
0.5 tsp(s) Spices - Basil, dried: Calories: 1
0.5 tsp(s) Spices - Thyme, dried: Calories: 1
0.5 tsp(s) Spices - Oregano, dried: Calories: 2
3.0 clove(s) Garlic - Raw: Calories: 13
1.0 small (2 inch dia) onion Small Yellow Onion, Generic: Calories: 25
0.5 tsp(s) Spices - Salt, table: Calories: 0
0.25 tsp(s) Spices - Pepper, black: Calories: 1
0.5 cup(s) Cheese - Parmesan, grated: Calories 216
0.5 cup(s) Tomato & Basil Pasta Sauce, Classico: Calories: 50
0.5 cup(s) Italian Five Cheese, Kraft Natural Cheese: Calories: 180
1.0 tbsp(s) Parsley - Raw: Calories: 1

Cheesy Meat Loaf Minis

This is another one where D and I agree our parents must have just made dry gross meat loaf. And we don't.

This was rather easy to make...we made it together (I chopped the onions and parsley, D put everything in a bowl and cooked the onions). We used yellow cheddar because we aren't all fancy and stuff.

The result was very flavorful. And moist. We both enjoyed it. We had with Garlic Fries.

Cheesy Meat Loaf Minis

Photo by ALB

We add white cheddar cheese to this comfort-food favorite making it seem more indulgent than it actually is at less than 300 calories per serving.

YIELD: 6 servings (serving size: 1 meat loaf)
COURSE: Main Dishes

Ingredients
1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs (about 1 ounce)--used Garlic Flavored
Cooking spray
1 cup chopped onion

2 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 cup ketchup, divided
3 ounces white cheddar cheese, diced -Used Yellow Sharp Shredded
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
3/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 pounds ground sirloin
1 large egg, lightly beaten

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 425°.

2. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add breadcrumbs; cook 3 minutes or until toasted, stirring frequently.

3. While breadcrumbs cook, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion and garlic; sauté 3 minutes. Combine onion mixture, breadcrumbs, 1/4 cup ketchup, and remaining ingredients. Shape into 6 (4 x 2-inch) loaves on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray; spread 2 teaspoons ketchup over each. Bake at 425° for 25 minutes or until done.

Nutritional Information
Calories: 256; Fat: 11.6g; Saturated fat: 5.7g; Monounsaturated fat: 3.9g; Polyunsaturated fat: 0.9g; Protein: 28.5g; Carbohydrate: 11.2g; Fiber: 0.9g; Cholesterol: 112mg; Iron: 2.6mg; Sodium: 620mg; Calcium: 159mg

Cooking Light JANUARY 2011

Cheesy Spinach Stuffed Meatloaf

D made this. It was pretty good. Of course he made it differently, by layering the cheesy spinach in the middle of the meatloaf. Overall we both liked it...we felt the meatloaf needed a bit more flavoring...pizza seasoning or Italian seasoning. We would have again. We had with spinach salad.

Cheesy Spinach Stuffed Meatloaf

1 1/2 pound lean ground beef
3/4 cup soft bread crumbs
1 large egg, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Filling:
1 package (10 ounces) frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and drained well*
1/2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

Topping:
3 tablespoons ketchup (used Marinara)
1/4 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
Italian seasoning (optional)

1. Heat oven to 350ºF (175ºC). In large bowl, combine meatloaf ingredients, mixing lightly, but thoroughly. In medium bowl, combine filling ingredients; mix well. Set aside.
2. Place beef mixture on waxed paper and pat into 14x10-inch rectangle. Spread filling over beaf, leaving 3/4-inch border about edges. Starting at short end, roll up jelly-roll fashion. Press beef mixture over spinach filling at both ends to seal. Place seam side down on rack in open roasting pan.
3. Bake in oven 1 hour. Spread ketchup over loaf; return to oven and continue baking 15 minutes or until beef is no longer pink. Top loaf with 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle with additional Italian seasoning, if desired.
4. To serve, cut into 1-inch thick slices.

Serves 6.
* For best results, use your hands to squeeze out the excess moisture from the defrosted spinach.
Recipe provided courtesy of Texas Beef Council and Beef It's Whats For Dinner.

Harlem Meat Loaf

So another one from EzraPoundCake.

D made it. No clue if it was easy, but I'm thinking it was ok. It was spicy. But spicy good. The pickles added an odd taste (like pickles...duh). The oddness was because of the spicy sausage and the tabasco, so then there was a blast of pickle.

Overall I liked it. I think D did too. We had with Turkish Potatoes (cut-up potatoes sauteed with Penzey's Turkish Seasoning).

Harlem Meat Loaf

From Matt Lee and Ted Lee’s “The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook”

For 4 people (we got 6 servings, 8 points a serving)

• 1 pound ground beef, chuck or sirloin
• 1/2 pound sweet Italian sausage, cut from their casings
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 teaspoons Tabasco
• 1/2 cup chopped sour dill pickles
• 1 1/2 cups finely chopped yellow onion (about 1 large onion)
• 3 garlic cloves, finely minced
• 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs, preferably fresh, preferably sourdough
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Glaze:

• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon Tabasco

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Break the beef and sausage into golfball-sized hunks and place them in a large, wide bowl. In a second large bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup ketchup with 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce and 2 teaspoons Tabasco sauce. Pour evenly over the beef and sausage. In the same bowl, mix the pickles, onion, garlic, and parsley, then scatter the mixture over the beef and sausage. Sprinkle the bread crumbs evenly over the top, then add the egg and the salt. With your fingers spread wide apart, gently mix the ingredients together in 6 to 8 gathering motions, until the ingredients begin to be uniformly blended.
3. Transfer the mixture to a 9-X-13-inch roasting pan and pat it into a loaf shape. Bake for 35 minutes on the middle rack. The loaf will render some fat and the surface will begin to brown.
4. Whisk the remaining 1/4 cup ketchup, 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce, and 1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce together in a small bowl. Brush the glaze generously over the top of the meat loaf. Continue to bake until the glaze stiffens and darkens slightly, about 15 minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
5. For optimum flavor, let cool to room temperature, tent the roasting pan with aluminum foil, and refrigerate for 24 hours. The next day, reheat the loaf, covered with the foil, in a warm oven.

Rio Grande Meat Loaf

So D made this. He cooked it for 35 minutes. If he cooked it any longer it would have been a brick. It was really dry. Not bad but dry. I liked the flavor. It would have been better with cheese. We had it with salsa and sour cream. We also had with Southwest Potatoes.

Rio Grande Meat Loaf

Yield: 8 servings Sandwich suggestion: Serve leftover meat loaf slices i (serving size: 2 slices)

1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons minced seeded jalapeño pepper
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon pepper
4 taco shells, finely crushed (about 1 1/2 ounces) - used broiled corn tortillas
2 egg whites
3 large garlic cloves, minced
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 pounds ground round
Vegetable cooking spray

Preheat oven to 375°. Combine first 12 ingredients in a large bowl, and stir well. Crumble beef over vegetable mixture, and stir just until blended.

Pack mixture into a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 1 hour (maybe 30 minutes but not 60) or until meat loaf registers 160°. Let meat loaf stand in pan 10 minutes.

Remove meat loaf from pan; cut loaf into 16 slices. Serve with commercial salsa, if desired.

CALORIES 234 (29% from fat); FAT 7.5g (sat 2.3g,mono 3.2g,poly 0.9g); IRON 4.1mg; CHOLESTEROL 66mg; CALCIUM 31mg; CARBOHYDRATE 11.6g; SODIUM 483mg; PROTEIN 28.9g; FIBER 1.9g

Cooking Light, MARCH 1996

Double-Cheese Meat Loaf

I had to wait for left-overs to decide on this one. Like most meat loaves, there was no overwhelming wow factor to this. It is just a basic meat loaf. But left-overs, it was pretty good.

I made it. It was really easy. The hardest part was that our meat loaf pan was flaking metal, so we just put it in a pan and made it free form.

Overall, it was good and I would have again.

Double-Cheese Meat Loaf

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 2 slices)

Cooking spray
1 cup chopped onion
6 tablespoons ketchup, divided
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard, divided
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 pound lean ground beef (used 1 lbs)
1/2 pound lean ground pork (used .5 lbs)
1/2 pound lean ground veal (didn't use)

Preheat oven to 375°.

Place a medium nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onion, and sauté for 3 minutes. Combine the onion, 1/4 cup ketchup, 1 tablespoon mustard, mozzarella, and next 6 ingredients (mozzarella through egg) in a large bowl. Crumble ground meats over cheese mixture; stir just until blended.

Pack mixture into an 8 x 4-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Combine 2 tablespoons ketchup and 1 tablespoon mustard; spread over top of loaf. Bake at 375° for 1 hour or until meat thermometer registers 160°. Let meat loaf stand in pan 10 minutes.

Remove meat loaf from pan, and cut into 12 slices.

Note: Substitute lean ground beef for the ground veal and pork, if desired.

CALORIES 329 (38% from fat); FAT 13.9g (sat 5.6g,mono 5.3g,poly 1.2g); IRON 2.4mg; CHOLESTEROL 133mg; CALCIUM 196mg; CARBOHYDRATE 15.1g; SODIUM 801mg; PROTEIN 33.8g; FIBER 1g

Cooking Light, SEPTEMBER 1998

Pizza-Style Meat Loaf

So this was pretty good. It had that "hot" that pizza has. It looked pretty easy to make. Will have again. We had with salad.

We assembled it differently.

Pizza-Style Meat Loaf
Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1 slice)

Ingredients
2/3 cup pizza sauce, divided (used Bertoli Marinara)
1 1/2 pounds extra-lean ground round
3/4 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 large egg white
2 (1-ounce) slices part-skim mozzarella cheese (used 2 oz of shredded)
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper (used green pepper)
Cooking spray

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350°.

Combine 1/3 cup sauce, meat, and next 8 ingredients (sauce through egg white) in a bowl (we added the green pepper). Shape meat mixture into an 18 x 12-inch rectangle on wax paper. Arrange cheese slices over meat mixture; sprinkle with red bell pepper, leaving a 1-inch border. Roll meat mixture up jelly-roll fashion starting at short side (we put half in a meatloaf pan, put cheese in the middle and put the other half of the mixture in). Pinch ends to seal.

Place meat loaf on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until meat loaf registers 160°. Brush 1/3 cup pizza sauce over meat loaf. Bake an additional 5 minutes or until done; let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

Nutritional Information
Calories:291 (39% from fat)
Fat:12.6g (sat 5.2g,mono 5.2g,poly 0.6g)
Protein:27.9g
Carbohydrate:15.4g
Fiber:0.9g
Cholesterol:75mg
Iron:4.4mg
Sodium:671mg
Calcium:96mg

Cooking Light, APRIL 1997

Santa Fe Meat Loaf

So I had to make this. It worried me a little, as I have never made a meatloaf. But it was pretty easy. Time wise, it took awhile. We had with Simply Potatoes tossed with Southwest Seasoning.

Santa Fe Meat Loaf


Slicing the loaf reveals a hidden layer of cheese. Leftovers are especially good on a sandwich. Serve with tossed green salad and corn bread.

Ingredients
Cooking spray
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup finely chopped red bell pepper (I used 3/4 of a green pepper)
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
4 garlic cloves, minced (I used 6)
1 tablespoon minced canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce (I used 2 chipotles...didn't seed...didn't measure)
1/2 pound 7% fat ground turkey (I used 93-7 ground beef)
1 pound ground turkey breast ( I used 93-7 ground beef)
3/4 cup dry breadcrumbs
2/3 cup mild chunky salsa, divided
1 teaspoon dried oregano
6 slices 30%-less-fat center-cut bacon (such as Oscar Mayer), cooked and crumbled
2 large egg whites
3/4 cup (3 ounces) reduced-fat finely shredded Mexican-style four cheese blend (such as Kraft 2% milk)

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350°.
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion, bell pepper, chili powder, cumin, and garlic to pan; sauté 1 1/2 minutes or until onion is tender. Stir in chipotle chile; sauté 30 seconds. Remove from pan; cool. Combine onion mixture, turkey, turkey breast, breadcrumbs, 1/3 cup salsa, oregano, bacon, and egg whites in a large bowl.

Place half of turkey mixture in an 8 x 4-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Arrange cheese over top, leaving a 1/2-inch border around outside edges. Arrange remaining turkey mixture over cheese, pressing edges to pack. Spread the remaining 1/3 cup salsa over top of meat loaf. Bake at 350° for 1 hour and 25 minutes (more like 40 minutes...since I used beef) or until a thermometer registers 165°. Let stand 10 minutes. Remove from pan; cut into 12 slices.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 2 slices)

Nutritional Information
CALORIES 288 (33% from fat); FAT 10.5g (sat 4g,mono 3.3g,poly 1.6g); IRON 2.2mg; CHOLESTEROL 88mg; CALCIUM 256mg; CARBOHYDRATE 14.8g; SODIUM 876mg; PROTEIN 31.5g; FIBER 1.4g

Cooking Light, MARCH 2006