Apple Meatloaf instead of birthday cake!
(Not pictured are the two loafs in bread pans already in the oven. I used just over 5lbs of meat! That's a lot of loaf)
Didn't think to take photos as I went but this is the recipe I modified
2 ½ pounds 80% lean ground beef
1 ½ cups prepared stuffing mix (Pepperidge Farm Herb Stuffing preferred)
2 peeled and finely chopped apples – about 2 cups (Granny Smith Apples)
2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons prepared horseradish
Salt (about 2 teaspoons) & freshly ground pepper to taste
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix the finely chopped onion, finely chopped peeled apples, stuffing mix, eggs, mustard, horseradish, ketchup, salt and pepper in a large bowl.
Stir to thoroughly combine all ingredients BEFORE adding the meat. Add 2 ½ pounds of 80% lean ground beef and using your hands, mix thoroughly until all of the ingredients have combined with the meat.
Prepare a broiler tray by pouring 1 cup of water in the bottom and spraying the top with nonstick spray. Form the meatloaf on the top of the broiler pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for 70-75 minutes until a meat thermometer reads 160 degrees.
The changes I made follow
Combination of pork and beef
Substituted gluten free rolled oats for stuffing mixture
Used a mixture of granny Smith, honey crisp, and pink lady apples
Added a paste of sautéed mushrooms, garlic, shallots, fresh thyme, and fresh rosemary (to help act as a binder as well as seasoning)
For the rolled oats I pulsed them in a food process6 first to break them up a bit and then soaked them in the eggs and a little milk (i just used the last of the jug but it was probably around half a cup for the doubled recipe). Basically you want the oats to form a paste once they've hydrated to prevent them from soaking up too much of the meatloaf's moisture and drying it out.
The mushrooms et al also got processed but into a nice paste rather than just diced. I add this mixture (with varying seasoning ingredients depending on what I'm making) to a lot of my ground meat dishes, like meatloaf, meatballs, or hamburgers. In addition to acting as a binder and flavouring agent it also helps add moisture to the end product.
