Week 3 Savory Saturday: Italian Turkey Meatloaf

Italian Turkey Meatloaf: A Healthier Version to Your Mom's 

 10/14/17

Being raised in a Pennsylvania Dutch family, I had a lot of meat and potatoes meals. My favorite meal was my mom's meatloaf! I mean who doesn't love meatloaf?! I use to eat almost half of the loaf by myself and then go sit on the couch for an hour afterwards always with a satisfied feeling in my stomach while watching SportsCenter highlights. But then I grew up and now a lot of red meat at once really gets the digestive system acting up. I can still have red meat once in a while, but I usually will save that for a steak. So today I was like, "Let's find a recipe to bring back the memories of mom's meatloaf, just not the after effects."


Italian Turkey Meatloaf. This recipe is another alternative for people who do not enjoy eating red meat or suffer stomach problems from too much of it. Beef does have more vitamins and minerals compared to turkey, but I find ground turkey digests easier for me and I think a lot of other people agree. You can chose extra lean or lean ground turkey but remember more fat equals more flavor. If you are watching fat calories than choose 99% extra lean ground turkey however I prefer the 93% lean. Make sure to also watch what kind of ground turkey you get because turkey can be just as processed as beef is.

Ingredients:

  • 2.5 lbs of lean or extra lean ground turkey
  • 1 small onion
  • 1 small green or red pepper
  • 2 ribs celery
  • 1/2 cup zucchini
  • 1 Tbsp. chopped garlic
Dried Spices:
  • 1 Tbsp. dried thyme
  • 1 Tbsp. dried basil
  • 1 Tbsp. dried parsley
  • 1 tsp. fresh ground pepper
  • 1 tsp. pink Himalayan salt
  • 4 eggs or egg whites
  • 2 cups rolled oats
Directions:
  • Cook all the veggies until they are just done and soft, adding the garlic during the last minute or so (12-15 mins.) Set aside to cool.
  • Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit 
  • Put all ingredients together in a large bowl and mix well with your hands
  • Rub two loaf pans with olive oil and fill each pan with meat mixture
  • Place pans on baking sheet in oven to catch any drips and cook for 35-45 minutes or until meat thermometer reads 135 degrees Fahrenheit 
  • Remove from oven and let rest for 20-30 mins
  • Cut into thick slices and serve!
You can use 93% ground beef as well and you can add extra vegetables or spices if you'd like. That's the thing with meatloaf, it's an experiment meal so you can add and take things away and see what combinations of veggies, spices, or kind of meat works for you. Give this recipe a try and let me know if you like it or not.

See everyone tomorrow for Stimulus Sunday! Enjoy your Saturday.

Best,

Ryan 

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