Wednesday: Apricot glazed Meatloaf with Spiced Sweet Potato Spears

 

 This is definitely not your traditional Plain-Jane meatloaf (no offense to anybody named Jane...where did that saying come from anyways? My daughter's middle name is Jane and there is nothing plain about her, that's for sure!). Add some yummy cinnamon-nutmeg spiced sweet potato spears and you've got yourself a flavorful meal! I made the original Rachel Ray recipe a little healthier by substituting half turkey, half beef instead of all beef, and it came out YUM-O!

Meatloaf Recipe
4-6 servings

  2 sliced of sandwich bread, chopped (I like a whole wheat variety)
  1/2 cup milk
2 TB apricot jam
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce 
1 LB ground beef
1 LB ground turkey breast
  1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted (I've tried putting them in un-toasted, and it's just not as flavorful, so it's worth toasting them)
7 dried apricots, chopped
2 tsp curry powder

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a small bowl soak bread pieces in the milk. Set aside. In a different bowl, whisk the jam and Worcestershire sauce. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl add the meat, almonds, apricots and curry powder. Add the breadcrumb mixture, and mix together with your hands (yeah, you're going to have to get your hands dirty on this one).Transfer to a loaf pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Brush top of meatloaf with jam mixture. 
3. Bake for 1 hour. Pour off the fat, and let cool for 10 minutes before taking it out of the pan. Serve with sweet potato spears.

Spiced Sweet Potato Spears

1 LB Sweet Potatoes, peeled and cut into spears ( I try to buy the smallest ones, cut them in half,then cut each half into 3-4 pieces)

2 TB Olive Oil
1/2 tsp cinnamon, or more to taste
1/4 tsp nutmeg, or more to taste
1/8-1/4 tsp salt

1. Mix potatoes and oil in a medium sized bowl. Lay them out flat on a baking sheet. Sprinkle cinnamon, nutmeg and salt on them. Bake with the meatloaf at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 50 minutes-1 hour. Check on them after 30 minutes to make sure they are not too crispy!

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Plan and Prep Ahead

Here are some helpful techniques to make life a little easier once dinner time hits. These tips will especially help those that work full-time and don't have a lot of time to prepare dinner.

~Mix together the meat through curry powder in a large bowl, cover with plastic wrap and keep in the refrigerator up to 24 hours ahead until ready to use.
~Toast almonds ahead of time, and keep in airtight container. 
~Cut up sweet potatoes, and keep covered in plastic wrap in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours ahead.

That's it! 

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Who likes to CHANGE IT UP?

~Try Orange Marmalade instead of Apricot Jelly.
~Swap out ground chicken for the turkey .
~Use all turkey instead of half beef.
~instead of Worcestershire sauce try soy sauce.