Meatloaf - a Classic Maurer Family Recipe

This recipe comes straight out of my family’s classic cookbook. It has been a recurring dinner on our table for as long as I can remember. As soon as I take a bite, I’m thrown back to the days when all I had to worry about was skinned knees and bedtime getting in the way of playtime.

I don’t make classic family recipes very often. Obviously it’s not because I don’t like my childhood food; it’s just that I’ve found a lot of easier recipes over the years and, being a busy student, I prefer to make easy meals. Because I don’t make these classic recipes very often, it feels like a special meal when I do make them.

Even though meatloaf is probably one of the most common recipes out there, I decided I wanted to share my family’s recipe. It’s one of our classics so it seemed fitting that it be one of the first recipes I share here on A Bibliophile’s View: Fitness, Food, and Faith. (Also, we just had it the other day so it was easy to get photos!)

For some reason, I find it easier to mix all of the dry ingredients together first and then add the wet, even though it's all going in the same place. Dry ingredients include breadcrumbs (I used Italian seasoned ones), onions (I hate cutting onions so I usually use Tastefully Simple's Onion Onion dip mix, but this time I did not), salt, pepper, and some extra herbs.

After I get all of the dry ingredients mixed together, I add in the milk and eggs. The original recipe says to beat the eggs slightly before adding them, but I never do. Lastly I add the meat. 

Then it's time for my least favorite part: mixing it all together. Honestly, this step is probably why I don't make this recipe very often. I hate it. But it must be done. I usually mix/knead the mixture for about three minutes to make sure everything is thoroughly combined.

Once the mixing is done, I shape it into a loaf and place it in a foil-lined baking dish.

I bake the loaf, covered, at 350 degrees for about an hour. Then I mix together the sauce, pour it on top, and bake the loaf, uncovered, for another 20 minutes.

The second hardest part next to the mixing is the serving. I have yet to find a way to serve my meatloaf without it falling completely apart. At least it tastes delicious!

Maurer Family’s Classic Meatloaf

Ingredients

2 lbs ground beef

1 cup breadcrumbs (I used Italian seasoned ones but you can use plain if you want)

1 cup chopped onion

1 tsp salt

¼ tsp black pepper

1 Tbsp your favorite herb mix (I used Tastefully Simple’s Spinach and Herb dip mix)

1 cup milk (I used skim but you can use whatever you want, although I would recommend sticking with dairy milk)

2 eggs

Sauce

(We eyeball the sauce, but these measurements are pretty accurate)

1 cup ketchup

2 Tbsp brown sugar

1 Tbsp BBQ sauce

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a deep baking dish with nonstick cooking spray (I line mine with foil first, but you don’t have to).

Put bread crumbs, onion, and seasonings into a bowl and mix. Add milk and eggs. Add burger. Mix with your hands until all of the ingredients are combined (about 5 minutes of mixing and kneading). Form mixture into a loaf and then place inside baking dish.

Bake covered for one hour.

After one hour, mix ketchup, brown sugar, and BBQ sauce. Take out the meatloaf and cover with the sauce mixture. Place back in oven and bake for another 20 minutes, uncovered.

What are some of your classic family recipes that bring back old memories?

Cheers!

Molly