Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Epic Meatloaf & Mashed Two-Tone Taters

I actually made this meal last week, but I am finally getting around to pulling together all of the recipes with their various tweaks.  I was over the moon for all of the lovely flavor combinations in this particular meal.  The only fussing from my family came from the use of sweet potatoes... Honestly, it was a bit silly to me to be raising such a stink over a few harmless tubers that were incorporated into a side dish in such a way that you could barely tell you were eating sweet potatoes other than the color, but that's just me.  I'm a foodie and I thought it was fabulous.


Isn't that gorgeous?!  I actually ended up grabbing another half slice of the meatloaf after I snapped this photo (my slice of the serving was actually too small).  Total meal was under 500 calories and highly satisfying. Here's the recipes for all this (except spaghetti squash which is delightfully simple to cook in the microwave or oven).

Turkey, Beef and Quinoa Meatloaf
Adapted from this recipe at Allrecipes.com
Prep Time: 30 Minutes
Cook Time: 50 Minutes
Ready In: 1 Hour 20 Minutes
Servings: 5

INGREDIENTS:
1/4 cup quinoa
1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1-2 cloves of minced garlic
10 oz ground turkey (93% lean)
8-10 oz ground beef (93% lean)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce (I used this Habenaro sauce and it was delightful, but you can use whatever you prefer)
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon mustard
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 to 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

DIRECTIONS:
1. Bring the quinoa and chicken broth to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the quinoa is tender, and the water has been absorbed, about 15 to 20 minutes. Set aside to cool.
2. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
3. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute; remove from heat to cool.
4. Stir the turkey, beef, cooked quinoa, onions, tomato paste, hot sauce, 2 tablespoons Worcestershire, eggs, salt, and pepper in a large bowl until well combined. The mixture will be very moist. Shape into a loaf on a foil lined baking sheet or use a meatloaf pan (which I have). Combine the ketchup, mustard, brown sugar and approximately 1 teaspoon Worcestershire in a small bowl. Rub the paste over the top of the meatloaf.
5. Bake in the preheated oven until no longer pink in the center, about 50 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 160 degrees F (70 degrees C). Let the meatloaf cool for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Bonus Sauce!
I make extra spicy sauce for the guys to slather on their meatloaf.  Its basically this:
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon mustard
1 teaspoons brown sugar
1/2 to 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Plus several dashes of the Habenero Hot Sauce

Microwave and stir until hot and bubbly.  Adjust flavors as needed.

Per Serving minus bonus sauce (according to MFP):
Calories 236
Carbs 14
Fat 8
Protein 25
Sodium 484
Sugar 6

Two-Toned Mashed Potatoes
Adapted from this recipe at EatingWell.com
Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 15 Minutes
Ready In: 35 Minutes
Servings: 6 servings, 1 cup each

INGREDIENTS:
1 tablespoon buttermilk plus 2/3 cup, divided
2 tablespoons plain nonfat greek yogurt
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
Pinch of salt plus 1 teaspoon, divided
4 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into 1-inch chunks
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 small leek, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced, white and light green parts only
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons minced fresh chives (I didn't have any, but I bet its a good add)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
2. Combine 1 tablespoon buttermilk, greek yogurt, onion powder and pinch of salt. Cover and refrigerate while you cook the vegetables.
3. Add potatoes, sweet potatoes, leek and minced garlic to the boiling water and return to a boil. Reduce heat to maintain a vigorous simmer and cook until tender enough to pierce with a knife, 12 to 15 minutes.
4. Drain and return the vegetables to the pan (off the heat).
5. Add the remaining 2/3 cup buttermilk, the remaining teaspoon salt, butter and pepper to the pan; coarsely mash with a potato masher. Serve topped with the sauce and chives.

Per Serving (according to MFP):
Calories 187
Carbs 35
Fat 4
Protein 5
Sodium 474
Sugar 8