Thanksgiving Dinner Meatloaf

Those who know me know that I am a "let's see what I get if I put these ingredients together" kind of gal. I also am one of those annoying cooks who doesn't measure, so it often makes it hard for me to share my recipes. However.... I knew that if this idea turned out, I would want to share it. So, like a good girl, I tried very hard to write down everything I did and remembered to measure and not just add by sight and smell. You're welcome.

So, as the title says, this is a Thanksgiving Dinner Meatloaf.  Ok, so other than ground turkey, what does that mean, right? Well, it means cornbread stuffing (sort of), and veggies, and cranberry sauce and potatoes.  All in one dish. And yeah, I know - ugh, ground turkey, it's always dry - right? Well this was not!

Now, to be clear, I made this by the seat of my pants. I had no idea what I was doing. I made it all up as I went along.  I am going to give you the recipe as I made it and then, at the end, I will give you some notes as to anything I might change, add in, leave out... you get the idea.  Also, this is a great recipe for using up left over veggies, so keep in mind, as you read the ingredient list, you can easily substitute other items or even add some more.

One more thing before we start. Like a total doofus, I was doing this without my glasses on - which means, my pics are not in focus. Yeah - that's right - idiot! But I figure better a few blury pics than nothing. So - sorry guys.

Here we go!

Ingredients (enough for 2 meatloaves, I always make 2 at a time. 1 to freeze)

3.25 lbs of turkey (approx.)
1 bag 14 oz Pepperidge Farm Corn Bread Stuffing Mix (or any brand)
1 small shallot
1 stalk of celery
salt pork (you can get from butcher if not in meat case)
2 cans diced potatoes
1/4 cup shredded carrots
1/4 cup green beans (canned, frozen or fresh)
1 cup chicken stock/broth plus a splash
1 8 oz can cranberry sauce
1 tsp sage plus 1/4 tsp
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3/4 tsp ground rosemary
1/2 tsp ground thyme
1/2 tsp celery salt
1 pod Knorr Chicken Homestyle Stock
approx. 2 oz apple sauce
3 tbsp. brown sugar
butter
olive oil

Finely dice the shallot and celery and sauté in a pan with butter and olive oil until soft.

In a bowl, place approx. half of the corn bread crumbs.  Add the 1 cup of chicken stock to the crumbs.  Add the celery and onion. Add 1/4 tsp sage. Mix until just combined. Set aside

Place ground turkey in a large mixing bowl.

In blender or food processor add the carrots, the green beans and the salt pork.
Why the salt pork? Because turkey tends to dry out easily. I don't want to add a package of pork and alter the flavor, but I want to add a little extra fat to help keep it moist. Personally, I choose not to use the heavy rind.  I cut out two of the fattiest parts. They weighed out to be 1.7 oz, but you can see from the pick they weren't particularly big. Remember, you are just trying to add a little extra fat. And of course, this is entirely optional.

see - sorry, blury. But give you an idea of how much salt pork I used.

Blend until completely pureed. You may need to add a splash of chicken stock to keep the carrots from sticking to the side of the bowl. Be prepared, when you are done, the contents will look very unappetizing lol.  Add to the ground turkey. (these pureed veggies worked as a binder and helped keep the meatloaf moist)

Add 1/4 cup of cranberry sauce. Reserve the rest of the can.  Add the Knorr chicken stock.  Add the stuffing mixture.  Add the sage, salt, pepper, rosemary, thyme and celery salt.  Mix together until well blended (you will probably want to use your hands.)  Once mixed, the mixture will definitely seem too wet. Add some of the remaining dry crumbs from the remainder in the bag of PF cornbread. Apprx 3/4 -1 cup, until consistency feels right.

Knorr chicken stock pods

 
Open the can of diced potatoes. NOTE: I wasn't sure if missing them in would crush the potatoes, so I chose to layer them. I may decide to try mixing them in next time. It's a matter of preference.

Place a small amount of the meat mixture in the bottom of your loaf pan.  Cover with a layer of your diced potatoes. Cover with another layer of mix, be sure to press down to get the meat all around the potatoes. Repeat the 2 layers and cover with remaining meat mixture.

Bake at 400 for about an hour and 10 minutes. Oven times may vary. We have a double oven and the top oven is small and does tend to cook just a little faster than the large one - so you may need to cook a little longer.

Sauce/Glaze: In a small sauce pan, combine remaining cranberry sauce, apple sauce and brown sugar.  Cook, stirring frequently until mixture is smooth. During the last 15 minutes or so of baking, brush the sauce on top of the meatloaf for a tasty glaze.  The remainder can be spread on the meatloaf when it's served or placed on the side of the dish to dip in.

We served ours with herbed corn bread. Easy peasy! 2 boxes of Jiffy cornbread mix made as directed, plus all the same seasonings in the meatloaf recipe, same measurements and everything (minus the salt).  I suggest stirring in the herbs into the cornbread before you add any of your wet ingredients to help ensure they get evenly dispersed. You don't want to over mix your bread.  It's delicious!  And a great base for making actual cornbread stuffing for Thanksgiving!

Since this has our meat, veggies and potatoes already all in it, we decided to have it with just a piece of the cornbread and a side salad. It was a hit. It did fall a part a little bit when trying to take it out, but that didn't effect the flavor at all. And..... it was NOT dry!

NOTES: Now, we are not big on veggies here. But... if your family is, you could leave the shredded carrots whole and have them as a nice crunchy contrast in your meatloaf.  Also, if you have leftover veggies in your fridge, puree them and use them! Great way to use up peas, Brussel sprouts, squash, sweet potatoes, etc. You could add Craisins, use turnip, squash or any combination instead of/or with your potatoes.  I would not recommend keeping things like green beans or peas whole as they would just be mush by the time the meatloaf is cooked and then be unappetizing.  If you prefer, you could layer with mashed potatoes. If you really want to be jazzy, alter layers with sweet potatoes with mini marshmallows, or butternut squash with pecans.  You could also serve with canned/jarred turkey gravy instead of cranberry sauce.  The possibilities are endless, but you can easily get that wonderful Thanksgiving dinner taste without having to deal with a big turkey and piles of side dishes any time you want.  Enjoy!

Oh! I alost forgot - want more stuffing? Want to have a side of stuffing with this?  Have 2 bags of stuffing mix. Increase the amount of celery and onion. When you put it all in the bowl, add more chicken stock, just until moist. Add all of the seasonings listed in the recipe, add some Craisins and chopped walnuts and 3 tbsp. of melted butter. Mix. Put into a backing dish or individual ramekins and serve with your meatloaf.