Fearless Friday: Meatloaf!

What's frightening about meatloaf, you ask? Well, I think I made it once 15 years ago, and it didn't turn out so well. So it's an entirely new endeavor for me. Also, since we are on a largely grain-free diet, I can't use flour or oatmeal to bind it. So I did a bit of research and made up my own recipe. And promptly used five whole pounds of ground beef to make it. So if it *doesn't* turn out, it will be a pretty big disaster.

Here is what I did:

5 lbs ground chuck (20% fat)

4 eggs, beaten

1 small sweet onion, diced

2 carrots, peeled & diced

1 orange bell pepper, diced (I'd have used red, but I happened to have orange)

1 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp smoked salt

1 tsp mustard powder

2 tsp dried oregano

2 tsp dried basil

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 350F. Mix the meat, vegetables, spices, & herbs in a large bowl, using your hands. Make a well in the center, and pour in the beaten eggs. Mix again with hands, until evenly mixed. Halve the mixture and press into two 5x9 loaf pans. Place both loaf pans on a rimmed baking sheet (to catch spillovers) & put into preheated oven. Bake 1 hour 15 minutes or until instant-read thermometer inserted into middle reads 165F. Drain fat, and let rest 10 minutes before slicing.

I just put them in the oven, so I'll update with how long they actually cook, and how they come out...

Update: OMGYUM!!! I love it! They took just over an hour & 15, certainly no more than an hour and a half. I turned off the oven and let them sit while my neighbor and I walked the dogs. I poured a bit of the fat into the dogs' food when we got back, and boy were they happy campers! I poured the rest of the fat/drippings into a container so we have quite a few more happy dog meals, LOL. So I transferred the loaves to a plate, cut a slice, and tried it out. I declare it a success! It could use a bit of gravy (or ketchup, Husband will say, LOL) because it's just a tad dry, but that really means that it held together well and is yummy!

I'm calling this one a success!