Q for Laura B re:meatloaf

[anna]

Hi Laura (or others with an opinion)I noticed in the dinner thread that you said you'd make the August2000 meatloaf "sans" sundried tomatoes next time. Although I haven't made this dish yet, I too had been considering trying it w/o s.d. tomatoes because my husband hates them (snakes them out even when I chop tiny and try to sneak in!) and he's the big meatloaf fan. Do you think it will be good without? That was the only thing keeping me from trying a recipe that obviously people think is great. Thanks for your thoughts.

[Laura B]

Personally, I think it will still be great without the sundried tomatoes. I don't care for them that much but went ahead and put them in because I wanted to follow the recipe exactly the first time. If your husband hates them and you don't feel too strongly about keeping them in, I would leave them out. But, please, let me know how it tastes without them!!

[anna]

Thanks for the quick response. I'm going to try if without or with just a tiny amount and I'll let you know what we think!

[MrsReber]

Hi- thought I'd put my two cents in here- I made it with the sundried tomatoes and my husband told me later that he really didn't like them in the meatloaf. I can't see it making a huge difference.

[Kristilyn1]

I haven't made this yet either--but would canned tomatos be okay? Since you reconstitute and chop them up anyway?

Kristi

[MrsReber]

Kristi, the meatloaf seemed a wee bit mushy when I took it out of the oven. I even let it sit for about 10-15 minutes. The only thing I'd watch out for with canned tomatoes is that they would be alot more juicy than the sundried. I'm not really sure why it came out so mushy. There's not a whole lot of liquid in it and I was using relatively low fat chop meat. I think someone else mentioned it came out mushy, too. It still tasted good and I could manage to carefully cut slices. After it compeletly cools, it seems okay.

[Beth Y]

I read the other posts about this meatloaf where everybody said it was mushy.....and mine came out dry? I did not cook it the full hour, but stuck a thermometer in it around 45 minutes and it was already at 170 degrees, so I pulled it. I thought the meatloaf was "just okay" and hubby and I agreed that my regular meatloaf is better and, since the recipe uses ground round, I don't think my recipe is any less light!

[KateH]

Kristi -

I used canned sun-dried tomatoes and just dabbed them dry, and it came out fine.

Kate

[shoyski]

To address the mushy issue, I used a muffin pan for the meatloaf and they came out perfect. And you can't cheat on the serving size! 20 minutes in my oven. Also, put the leftovers on a cookie sheet in the freezer and after they're frozen, throw in a freezer bag for quick leftovers.

My husband and I aren't huge sundried tomato fans so I used about a third of a cup of sundried sprinkles. Couldn't even taste them so I'm guessing they just "added" to the flavor of the meatloaf.

We'll be making it again.

[Susann]

Shoyski-How many muffin tins did you use? What temp. did you bake them at?

I just love your idea. I made the meatloaf tonight and next time I make them I am totally gonna use the muffin tins!

[Laura B]

shoyski! I love the idea of using muffin tins. I think I will definitely have to try that next time. How does one "muffin" comapre to CL's serving size? Is one equal to one slice?

[hollygoltly74]

thanks everyone! i am going to be making this recipe for dinner tomorrow night and will definitely be leaving out the sundried tomatoes...

[shoyski]

I used one muffin tin from WS. It was the regular size, not the mini.

I cooked it at the same temp as the loaf required and it took approximately 20 minutes.

There were 12 "muffins" with serving size being two. I served it with mashed potatoes, green been casserole and a salad. I served myself only one muffin and found that to be enough with all of the other accutrements.

In fact, my husband wanted to start with three muffins on his plate and I asked that he start with two...and he was fine with just that after finishing (plus dessert).

[Luvlax]

we loved the recipe as is. perhaps you are finding your meatloaf mushy because you are cooking it in a loaf pan and the fat seeps back into it. I cooked it on a broiler pan and the fat dripped down. That worked great. we don't have any extras to freeze because we eat it hot the first night, cold in sandwiches the second night and then for lunch. yum