Sunday Dinner - Meatloaf

This Sunday dinner staple is sure to please even the pickiest of eaters. Subtlety sweet and delicious.

This recipe is one of our family favorites, and for good reason. Not only does my entire family enjoy the meal, but my kids LOVE to help with the prep. - more on that below. I usually pair this with some steamed broccoli or green beans and mashed potatoes. Serves my family of 4 easily with plenty for leftovers.

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Ingredients

For the Meatloaf:

• 2 lbs. ground beef

• 1 lb. ground sausage (I have used spicy sausage for a little extra flavor, but regular is preferred)

• 1 sleeve of Ritz crackers, crushed

• ½ green bell pepper chopped

• ½ onion, chopped (I prefer yellow onion, but white will work well too)

• 2 large eggs, slightly beaten

• 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

• 1 tsp. yellow mustard

• 2 tbsp. of brown sugar

For the Sauce:

• ½ cup packed brown sugar

• 1 cup ketchup

Step 1:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

While the oven is heating you will start preparing the meat mixture. In a large mixing bowl add the ground beef, sausage, and eggs.

Step 2:

Crush up the sleeve of Ritz crackers. I recommend adding the crackers to a large Ziplock bag for this step. The sleeve will bust open and leave you with a big mess if you're not careful. - This step is one my kids love to help with. Once your crackers are all crushed up, add them to the meat mixture.

Step 3:

Chop up your green bell pepper and onion. For especially picky eaters, chop these two ingredients even smaller to "hide" them in the mixture. Once you have them chopped, add them to your meat mixture.

Step 4:

Add your Worcestershire sauce, yellow mustard, and 2 tbsp, of brown sugar. Occasionally I will add about 2-3 tbsp. of ketchup to the mixture, but it is not necessary with the sauce on top which will be added later.

Step 5:

This is where my kids get really into making this dish. Literally. The mixture will be hard to combine, the easiest way (and most fun, according to my kids) is to dig in with both hands and combine all of the ingredients until combined throughly.

Step 6:

In an 11x7 baking dish form a loaf with the mixture. The loaf should be approximately 10 inches long and 5-6 inches wide. Place the meatloaf in the oven for about 1 hour. You can use a meat thermometer in the thickest part of the loaf to check that your meatloaf has cooked throughly.

While the meatloaf is cooking you will combine the ingredients for the sauce. After the meatloaf is cooked thoroughly drain the excess liquid from your baking dish, and evenly spread the sauce across the top of your meatloaf. Return to oven for 5-10 minutes.

Let your meatloaf cool for about 15-20 minutes before cutting and serving.

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Let us know what you think and your favorite side dishes by commenting below!