Cheeseburger Meatloaf

Meatloaf dinner was a staple in my home growing up. As a kid, it wasn't my favorite thing. My mother makes a great meatloaf. I love it now. I guess I was just being a brat-child. Thinking back, I guess I thought it was weird to put oatmeal & egg in meat.

Maybe it was the fact that my dad told us that when he made meatloaf it was actually cat-loaf?

Whether you like it or not in 2007, it was voted the 7th favorite dish in the United States according to the Good Housekeeping website. The "loaf" shape is made by either cooking it in a loaf pan, or forming it by hand on an ordinary baking pan (my mom's way.) Mom also added the oatmeal to the meatloaf to stretch the meat. It all makes sense now, there was seven of us!

In any case it's one of those things I love now. Here's how I made mine cheeseburger style.



Bacon. No I don't use bacon in everything, just everything lately! Hey, it's cheeseburger meatloaf. Who dosen't like bacon on a cheeseburger? Anyway, I used half of this package which was 6oz. Chop it up and get it crispy.



Take two pounds of ground beef and add the following:



6oz of tomato paste



A few TBSP of mustard



Sticking with meatloaf tradition we gotta add something to stretch the meat. Stuffing mix. I learned this trick from my friend jLoud. It seasons the meat nicely. I've used crushed Cheese-It crackers too. Either way is good.



One egg.



Mix well.



Don't forget about the bacon. Once its done, drain it and set aside until later.



Take mixture and set it on plastic wrap. Flatten it out by hand and then cover the top with another sheet of plastic wrap.



Now use a rolling pin to roll it into a nice flat even meat-sheet.



Now its time to top the meat-sheet with the cheeseburger stuff.



Chopped onion



Chopped pickles



Chopped tomatoes, american cheese, and the bacon.



Now put the plastic wrap back over it and push the ingredients into the meat. Don't crush it, just push them into it lightly. Keep it covered and put it in the freezer for about 20 miniutes to firm up a little. This makes it much easier to roll up. I have been rolling up meatloafs like a roulade for a while. I like the way it distributes the ingredients evenly and it looks really cool when you slice it to have a spiral shaped slice. Something a little different than the traditional "loaf" but thats what I like.



Start the roll by hand for about one turn.



Now that there's a turn it it, grab the plastic wrap and a straight edge.





This is very simple. As you pull the plastic wrap out from under the meat it really rolls up itself.





Boom! Done.



Place on a rack and put some foil under it to cach drippings for easy clean up.



Use a probe thermometer and bake in 350 degree oven until internal temp reaches 160, about 40 miniutes or so.



Looks good! Let is rest for about 10 min before cutting.



Plate up and enjoy.

Ingredients List

• 2 lbs of ground beef
• (1) 6oz can of tomato paste
• yellow mustard
• stuffing mix
• (1) Egg
• several strips of bacon
• (1) tomato
• 1/2 onion
• dill pickles
• american cheese

Ground Beef Shepherd's pie.

This is a simple meat & potatoes style dish I threw together after work the other day. I have over a dozen subscribers now (I am happy about that, tell your friends!) Some readers have mentioned that not everyone is a meat-eater. If you don't dig beef, substitute with ground turkey and use chicken broth instead of beef broth. If you dont like poultry, substitute with veggie stock and favorite veggies. I will make some veggie-minded stuff soon too, so don't get scared away.

Either way this is a good, quick, cheap and delicious.



Start with browning about 1 1/2 lbs of ground beef. While this is browning peel and chop about 3 or 4 medium sized potatoes.



Cover them with water and add some beef base (to make beef broth)



This is what I like for beef broth. I scored this from Meijer one super saturday for $4. It's usually close to $5 but its worth the money for excellent flavor. Bring this to a boil and cook potatoes until soft enough to easily mash.



Stir and chop beef and cook until browned.



Drain off excess fat and set aside



Spoon out potatoes reserving the broth you cooked them in. This will be made into gravy.



Return the broth to the heat and get it boiling again.



Season it. I used about 1 tsp of coarse black pepper and 1 tsp of thyme.



While the broth is heating mash your potatoes. Add a couple of dollops of sour cream, a little butter and a little minced garlic to taste.



Now that the broth is hot thicken it with about 1 TBSP of cornstarch dissolved in warm water.



Add slowly because this stuff thickens quickly. You probably won't need all of it. If you put in too much it will be sludge instead of gravy.



Now that the potatoes are mashed and the gravy is made, mix your ground beef with half a bag of your favorite frozen veggies in a 8x8x2 in baking pan. Cover with gravy. You probably won't use it all. Save it or treat the dog if you have one



These were my favorite because of the price! They were $1.19, not $11.19.



Spoon on the potatoes to cover the meat/veggie/ gravy mix.



Cover the taters with a couple of diced slices of american cheese. Bake it in the oven at 375 degrees until bubbly and brown, about 30 miniutes.





This finished product. Let it set for a few miniutes, and then spoon out and enjoy!

Ingredients List

• 1 1/2 pounds of ground beef
• 4 potatoes, peeled and chopped
• mixed vegetables
• beef base
• minced garlic
• thyme
• black pepper
• American cheese
• sour cream
• corn starch
• butter

White Chicken Chili

This is by far one of my favorite dishes. Don't get me wrong, very little beats the fine satisfaction of a bowl of traditional beef/bean/tomato based chili. I must admit however, the first time I had white chicken chili was one of the best surprises I can think of. I'm sure white chili has the same "rules" that traditional chili has, depending who is making it. It seems like every chili cook has "the best recipe." Heres one of mine.



I have made this version of white chicken chili before for my friends at Surroundings Candle Factory & Fine Cigars in Manistee.

Whenever I've shared this it's been a hit so I figured I'd share it on the food blog.




To keep things simple and cheap, I used one of the pre-cooked rotisserie chickens available at nearly every grocery store. For $5.99 (which is sometimes less that a RAW chicken) this is a great route for the chili, or any soup making.





This starts out like the chicken noodle soup. Pour some water over it and boil it down.







One thing I did here (differently from the chicken noodle) is add some chicken bouillon powder. This "Caldo de Pollo" is available in the ethnic foods area. I like it because it doesn't have MSG's and its not too salty and it makes great broth. It will only add to the flavor as long as you don't add too much. Mix it according to package instructions, 1 tsp per 8 oz of water.






Cover, bring to a boil, then let it simmer for about 2 hrs.





While that's simmering, get the rest of your things together. Two big jars of great northern beans, a red pepper, a red onion, salsa, Ro-Tel, creamed corn, pepperjack cheese, kernel corn and sour cream.



Dice up the onion and pepper. Set aside while you take care of your now boiled down chicken.



Remove all the meat and bones from the stock. Put it in the fridge to cool. Strain the stock to make sure no bone bits make it into the chili.

Return the now strained stock to the pan. Check the strainer for delicious meat bits.

Now add the following:

Drained Ro-Tel, then top it off with salsa to equal a total of about 16oz.

Usually I use 8oz of sweet canned corn. I didn't have any so I used frozen corn instead. It works just fine too.

Diced red onion

Diced red pepper

One can of cream style corn (I think this was 14.5oz)

Stir it and bring to a simmer again to cook the veggies. While its heating add the spices.

About 1 TBSP of minced garlic

1 1/2 tsp of coarse ground black pepper

1 1/2 tsp of chili powder

1 1/2 TBSP of ground cumin

Give a stir and check the veggies to see if they're cooked.

Once the veggies are cooked add both jars of beans (These were 48oz ea.)

While letting all that heat up and simmer, pick through your now cooled chicken. It takes time but if you're meticilous, there's alot of meat. After making sure there's no bones add it to the pot.

Grate the 1 pound (16oz) package of pepperjack cheese. Add it to the chili slowly one handful at a time while stiring continuously. If you dump it all in at once it will be a clumpy mess of globby cheese chunks. Take the time to stir it in slowly.

This will help thicken and add some zing. This isn't breath taking fire-hot chili, just enough to let you know there's a kick to it.

Now that the cheese is a melted, add the sour cream (16oz) and stir until smooth again.

Now Dish it up, and ENJOY! This will make about 8-10 qts. If you don't need that much then half the recipe. I bet you'll go through it quicker than you think.

Ingredients List

• (1) whole chicken
• water
• "Caldo de Pollo" or you own favorite bouillion
• (2) 48oz jars of great northern beans
• (1) can of Ro-Tel tomatoes and green chilies plus you favorite salsa to total 16oz
• 16oz of pepperjack cheese
• 16 oz of sour cream
• (1) red onion
• (1) red bell pepper
• (1) can of cream style corn
• whole corn, canned or frozen
• ground cumin
• coarse ground black pepper
• chili powder
• minced garlic