For the last few weeks, our small group has been working through Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University (which I highly recommend).  During our monthly Budget Committee meetings, Ryan and I have learned that giving each dollar a job involves a lot more than just writing down numbers.  It also means talking about our plans for Christmas (to begin saving for gifts) or deciding which chores our boys will get commissions for this month, for example.

Now, I’m not Julia Child and I’ve never been a successful menu planner.  But “Uncle Dave” has changed a lot of our habits, and in order to stick with a grocery budget, we need to have a solid plan.  We’ve been incorporating lots of new recipes from Pinterest (like this one, and this one, and this one) but one recipe that keeps showing up on our table is my father-in-law’s meatloaf.

I think you either really enjoy meatloaf or you really don’t… but this particular version has won the hearts of even the pickiest eaters (Evan!!!).  It’s right up my alley because you just toss a handful of standard ingredients into a bowl, smash ’em together and bake ’em.  Plus, it’s so moist and flavorful you don’t need any extra ketchup or BBQ sauce of any kind.  Even my kids don’t request extra condiments.

I’ve emailed this recipe to a few friends over the years, but I figured I’d share it here so it’s easily accessible to everyone.

Ingredients:
3lb. ground turkey
2lb. ground beef
2lb. pork sausage (or Italian sausage if you prefer)
2 packets dry onion soup mix
1 1/2 cups uncooked oats
2/3 cup ketchup
1/2 cup sour cream
2 eggs
lots of garlic

*NOTE: this picture represents half of the listed ingredients.  I prefer to divide it and put one half in the oven while I mix up the second batch and stick it in the fridge, ready to bake another night.  One prep period, two hearty meals. 

Instructions:
Put all (or half of) the ingredients into a large bowl and dig in.  Mixing with your hands is really the best method… and it’s kinda therapeutic.

Press it into a pan and bake uncovered at 350 for 1 1/2 hours, or until the middle reaches about 160 degrees.  I typically use one large loaf pan and one 8×8 baking dish since that’s what I have on hand.  I bake the loaf pan right away (and it usually takes about an hour and 40-45 minutes) and put the other dish in the fridge, covered in foil.  I’m sure you could also use muffin pans or even a 9×13 pan, but you may have to adjust the baking time and temperature.

Once it’s baked, I drain off all the grease and slice it up.

This week, we served it with a heaping pile of brussels sprouts with bacon and red onion.

This recipe makes great leftovers (my boys even eat it cold) and it’s a healthy, delicious, versatile comfort meal that everyone enjoys.