Mini Turkey Meat Loaves and Organic Green Beans

This first recipe is one of my new favorites. I pulled it from Cook Yourself Thin, which was also a show on Lifetime for a while.



I bought the book on Amazon.com, but you can find a few of the recipes (and even watch episodes of the show) here.

Mini Turkey Meat Loaves

Serves 4
Calories per serving: 227

For the meatloaves:
1 slice whole-wheat bread
1/2 cup skim milk
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon olive oil
1 onion, diced
5-ounce bag baby spinach leaves
1 1/4 pounds ground turkey
2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

For the glaze:
3 tablespoons ketchup
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon hot sauce

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Arrange oven racks to accommodate two dishes being cooked simultaneously.

2. Grind the bread in a food processor until fine crumbs form. Transfer to a large bowl, and pour milk over crumbs.

3. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large skillet, preferably nonstick, over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and golden, about 5 minutes. Add spinach, and stir until just wilted, about 30 seconds. Transfer to bowl with soaked crumbs. Add the turkey, cheese, egg, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Combine the mixture with your hands until well mixed; it will be quite wet.

4. Pack 1 cup of the mixture into a 1-cup dry measuring cup. Invert the cup onto a rimmed baking sheet, gently shaking the cup to release the mixture. Gently pat the mound to smooth its shape. Repeat three times with remaining mixture. Bake mini meatloaves until cooked through and golden, about 40 minutes.

5. While the meatloaves are cooking, make the glaze: In a small bowl combine the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce. Brush over meatloaves.

Mrs. AW's Variations

-Mr. Army Man and I aren't too keen on the extra-hot glaze, so I make it with half the tobasco sauce.

-I also have substituted 5oz. of frozen, chopped spinach (thawed, of course) for the fresh, bagged stuff.

-I haven't tried it yet, but I'm going to use this recipe and make meatballs. If doing so, only bake for about 30 minutes, or so.

-These bad boys can also be cooked on the grill. Smash 'em down so they look like thick hamburgers and grill until done.

Organic Green Beans, a la Mrs. Army Wife

E (Army Man) and I LOVE green beans. For an extra special treat, we sprinkle french fried onions on top.

1. One can of:

I am now in love with organic veggies. They taste like they're fresh from the garden! :o)

2. 1/2 of a small onion, chopped to your liking.

3. A bit of pepper, an even smaller bit of salt. To your liking, of course.

4. A tablespoon or two of butter. Again, to your liking.

{one of my favorite things about cooking is that, in most cases, you have the ability to tweak the recipe a bit and make it something that belongs to you! I felt like I had to put this because I felt silly putting "to your liking" after every single thing....}

-Pour entire can into small pot, add onion and simmer 'til onions are cook (transparent). Drain liquid. Add seasoning and butter and cook until butter is melted.

Variations: I haven't tried this yet, but a crumbled slice of turkey bacon might be a tasty treat to add in at the very end. I bet E would love me forever if I did.

Two of my favorite things, spinach and onions. That's probably why I love this recipe so much. And it's a good way to trick E into eating veggies.

The final product, made complete with my mother-in-laws recipe for macaroni salad. Sorry, I can't share that one--she'll break my kneecaps. Just kidding! My MIL is WONDERFUL!

bon appétit!

Mrs. AW