Foodashion's Blog

It’s Mega because it came out awesome and ended up being bigger then I thought. This is a variation on a recipe that my Mom sent to me. She and her friend at work love food like I do and we are constantly talking about who made what. This is NOT the meatloaf I remember. Fellow Vegetarians please move on to previous or next post

This has so many delicious ingredients it can’t be anything but AWESOME. Although I wish there were a better name….Loaf just does not do the food justice

WHAT YOU NEED:
2 1/2 to 3 lbs ground beef (80% lean from a healthy source) You can use a “meatloaf” mix from the store but there is so much flavor I don’t think you need to.
2 large eggs
3 large garlic cloves minced
3/4 cup Panko bread crumbs (1/2 lemon pepper if you have it)
1 Cup onion chopped
1 Cup Parmesan cheese ( you can use shake cheese but fresh grated makes a huge difference)
1/4 Cup shredded mozzarella cheese
3/4 Cup fresh basil chopped
1 to 1 1/4  Cup good quality Marinara sauce – The recipe from Nick, Mom’s friend has homemade sauce but Rao’s is the only one I will use, it is worth every penny and really tastes like homemade.
1 tsp salt
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 tsp chopped chives or parsley for garnish…THIS NEEDS GARNISH IT”S A LOAF!

WHAT YOU DO:
Pre Heat oven to 375 degrees
In a large mixing bowl mix everything but 1/2 cup of the Marinara sauce. Take off your rings and get in there with your hands!
Make sure to really mix it and incorporate the ingredients so every bite explodes with flavor.
Put on to a clean surface or cutting board and form the “loaf”
Place in a baking dish that holds it sung to ensure it stays the same shape from when you formed it. It should be the constancy of a meat ball, if it is too wet it may flatten
Pour remaining sauce over the top and bake for 1 hour or until the temp from the inside reads 160. This is a good time for a meat thermometer it is just safer and depending on how you form it depends on cooking time so run out and grab one if you don’t already have one.