A Less Meaty Meatloaf
Ingredients: Serves 4
Grass-fed ground beef- 1lb
White or Spanish onion-2 cups- minced
Shallots- 4 -minced
Shitake mushrooms- 2 cups- minced
Garlic-4 cloves -minced
Parsley, fresh- I bunch -chopped
Thyme, fresh- 1 tablespoon
Rosemary, fresh- 1 tablespoon – chopped
Sage, fresh- 1 teaspoon- chopped
Oregano, dried- 1 teaspoon
Onion powder- 1 teaspoon
Garlic powder- 1 teaspoon
Egg- 2 organic
Gluten-free panko breadcrumbs- ½ cup
3 tablespoons Organic BBQ sauce. (I use Sky Valley Gluten-Free Korean BBQ Sauce).
Season generously with Himalaya or sea salt and ground black pepper
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 425
In a food processor chop the onions, garlic and shallots. Place in a large mixing bowl and set aside.
Wipe out food processor and use for mushrooms. Add mushrooms to the mixing bowl with the onions.
Wipe out food processor and use for parsley, rosemary, thyme and sage. Add to bowl with mushrooms and onions.
Add the remaining ingredients – ground beef, dried oregano, onion powder, garlic powder, eggs, breadcrumbs- to the mixing bowl. Season generously with salt and pepper.
With your hands (take off your rings if you’re wearing any) mix all of the ingredients together until you reach a consistent texture. It should feel like ground meat.
Place mixture in a pre-greased (I use spray ghee) 1.5 quart loaf pan.
Pat down and shape in the pan
Brush the top with BBQ sauce
Place in the over for @40 minutes.
I use this mixture to reduce the amount of meat we consume as well as to increase vegetable intake. I find that the taste of mushroom disappears amongst the other spices and herbs. Even my 10 year-old who can’t stand mushrooms loves this meatloaf. That being said, those who are more sensitive to the taste of mushrooms might want to dial back on the amount of mushrooms you use. Maybe start with 1 cup in the mixture and increase from there depending on taste. For those that love mushrooms you can dial it up and use 3 cups! I have gone up to 3 cups of mushrooms in the past and the taste was much more noticeable. I am a mushroom lover though so it still worked for me.
The goal at every meal is to achieve a plate that is 60% vegetables. Meat should only consist of about 20% of our diet. I like to serve this meatloaf with garlicky greens and roasted sweet potato wedges. That way my tastebuds, and my nutritional needs, are satisfied!
By Tapp Francke Ingolia