It’s funny, when I was in high school I had the nickname “Little Susie Homemaker”. I’ll admit it, I had big aspirations of becoming a mom who had a perfectly organized house, cooked big elaborate home-cooked meals, had fresh baked cookies on the table when my kids got home from school, and greeted my husband at the door with a kiss.

Then I grew up, got married and became a mom, and a working mom at that!

Nowadays, we are lucky to all eat dinner at the same time, and when we do (go ahead and gasp now) it is sometimes watching TV. We are also lucky if we all eat the same thing! For a while, I was making three separate meals for each of us. (Yes, ridiculous, I know.) Now, my daughter is on a special low sugar diet due to issues with insulin resistance, and my husband and I are trying to get on board and eat low sugar together as a family for her sake, and ours. But being a working mom, I don’t like to cook, and I don’t have the energy for big fancy meals when I get home, much less the cleanup. So, I try to stick to quick easy meals.

Have a picky eater? My daughter is picky, but we have a fun routine, which gets her to try the foods we cook. We stage a “Mommy and Me Cooking Show”, with real live call-ins from my husband Eric who pretends to be someone watching the show with a question about the recipe. Its silly, but fun, and my rule is, you help cook it, you have to try it! So, from the latest episode, here is “Kaylea and Mommy’s Delicious Turkey Meatloaf”.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9TcU3l8iTZs]

Easy and Delicious Turkey Meatloaf

turkey-meatloaf Ingredients:

1 lbs. ground turkey (approx. can be up to 1-1.5 lbs.)
1/3 cup chopped onions
1/3 cup chopped green peppers
2/3 cup Italian breadcrumbs
1 (12 oz.) jar Boston Market’s beef gravy
1/4 tsp. salt (optional)
1/4 tsp. pepper (optional)
2 tbsp. butter (to melt onions and peppers in)

Directions:

1.) Preheat the oven to 350°

2.) Sauté onions and green peppers in butter until soft (you can do this, but I use the microwave, it is quick and easy!)

3.) Combine ground turkey, bread crumbs, onions, green peppers, salt, pepper, and 1/2 the jar of brown gravy. Mix really well with your hands (make sure they are clean). Shouldn’t be too dry or sticky, if it is, add a little more gravy.

4.) In a glass cooking dish or loaf pan, shape into the shape of a loaf.

5.) Spread remaining gravy on top and sides.

5.) Bake in a 350° oven for 40-50 minutes. (Everything I read says internal temperature should be at 165°, but I normally cook it for about 40 minutes.)

Wait 5 minutes to slice in and serve! The beef gravy comes from an old recipe my husband’s mom uses for her brown gravy meatloaf (his favorite meal by the way). The gravy actually gives the turkey a great flavor, and I think you’ll be surprised when your kids try it! We serve it with green beans, but you can serve it with mashed potatoes too.

So that’s what we ate this week. What’s your favorite way to cook meatloaf?

cooking-with-kay