Finally, A Meatloaf Recipe You Can Swallow…

With apologies to Michael Lee Aday and "Bat Out Of Hell", here you go foodie friends.

The much-maligned meatloaf. Conjures up cheapness, tastelessness, bogusness. My mother made a crappy one, as did my Aunt. With so many ways to make a meatloaf, you would have thought at least one of 'em would come out fine, but...

Fast-forward to the early Eighties, and the discovery of a meatloaf recipe that you actually can't wait to do again, thanks to a co-worker friend of my wife from way back in the day when we first got married. I was skeptical of mixing the ground beef with apple. I was wrong.

As for left-overs, killer burgers lie in wait. We've tried other meatloaf recipes over the years just to compare, and none of 'em did. This one from 1982 is officially the only one that we always {always!} come back to.

Pam L.'s Apple Meatloaf:

Ingredients:

2 lbs. ground beef, 1 cup fresh bread crumbs, 1 egg (beaten), 1 large apple (peeled and shredded/grated), 1/4 cup molasses, 1/4 cup whole milk, 1/3 cup minced onion, a generous amount of salt & pepper

Directions:

Mix all in a bowl until well blended, but not mushy. Place in a 9 x 5 loaf pan. Bake at 350 for one hour.

While the meatloaf is baking, you make the glaze for topping:

2 tablespoons each of molasses and ketchup, 1 teaspoon of mustard. Blend well. After the loaf has cooked for an hour, take it out and spread the glaze over the top of the meatloaf and bake for an additional 15 minutes

You'll never mock the meatloaf again. When using what's leftover (if there is any) to make burgers, we love Food Networks Damaris Phillips' Green Tomato Jam to go with those. Ooh-la, indeed!