The Best Meat Loaf Casserole Ever!

At age 10 I encountered a meatloaf situation that haunted me until I tried the recipe below.  We were in the mountains and dinner was served - a big glob of meatiness sliced like a piece of bread.  As a girl who needed all food to be separate on her plate, this compilation of bread, meat, eggs, and green items stimulated my gag reflex immediately.  The solution - ketchup. And lots of it.  However, after I drenched the meaty glop in the best condiment created, the cook herself was appalled that I destroyed her dish.  She made me "try" it the natural way first.  I did and it was the first and last time I touched meatloaf until I tried my sisters recipe 30 years later.  

You can cook it in a casserole dish or your can put the mixture into muffin tins.  Either way, you will not need any ketchup for this recipe.  And it has been kid tested too.

Ingredients

1 envelope lipton onion soup mix

1 lb ground beef

1 lb ground pork

3/4 cup fine dry bread crumbs

2 eggs (beaten)

1/2 c. milk (optional)

3/4 cup ketchup

1/4 cup chopped onion

1/4 cup chopped green pepper

1  t. season salt

1/4 t. black pepper

1/2 t. basil, oregano, mixed herbs

 

1. Mix eggs, soup mix, bread crumbs, seasonings, ketchup, milk, onions and green pepper together. Add ground meat; mix well. Lightly pat mixture into baking dish.

 

2. Bake at 350 for 1 to 1 1/4 hrs or until meat registers 160 on meat thermometer.

 

3. In a small bowl mix together sauce ingredients. :

 

1 can tomato sauce

1/2 cup ketchup

1 T. apple cider vinegar

1 teas worsteshire sauce

1/2 - 1 t. chili powder

 

Drain off excess oil. Pour over meat. Bake last 30 minutes.