Ina's Turkey Meatloaf

I've already professed how much I love a good meatloaf. I've seen several great reviews of Ina's turkey meat loaf and knew I had to try it. I liked the idea of using ground turkey versus the traditional beef for a change. I cut this recipe in half, but you could always make the full recipe and have leftover portions to freeze. We had quite a bit leftover even with halving this one. This was simple comfort food at its best. The meatloaf was moist and flavorful and had a slight tang to it, I'm assuming the tanginess came from the Worcestershire sauce. This one will definitely go into our meatloaf rotation along with my other favorites. I also liked Ina's trick of putting a pan of water in the oven to keep the meatloaf from cracking. It worked like a charm! I served this with Ina's Sauteed Broccolini.

Favorite Meatloaf Recipes:
Bubby's Meatloaf and Red Pepper Sauce
Italian Meatloaf

Turkey Meatloaf

• 3 cups chopped yellow onions (2 large onions)
• 2 tablespoons good olive oil
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (1/2 teaspoon dried)
• 1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 3/4 cup chicken stock
• 1 1/2 teaspoons tomato paste
• 5 pounds ground turkey breast
• 1 1/2 cups plain dry bread crumbs
• 3 extra-large eggs, beaten
• 3/4 cup ketchup

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a medium saute pan, over medium-low heat, cook the onions, olive oil, salt, pepper, and thyme until translucent, but not browned, approximately 15 minutes. Add the Worcestershire sauce, chicken stock, and tomato paste and mix well. Allow to cool to room temperature.

Combine the ground turkey, bread crumbs, eggs, and onion mixture in a large bowl. Mix well and shape into a rectangular loaf on an ungreased sheet pan. Spread the ketchup evenly on top. Bake for 1 1/2 hours until the internal temperature is 160 degrees F. and the meatloaf is cooked through. (A pan of hot water in the oven under the meatloaf will keep the top from cracking.) Serve hot, at room temperature, or cold in a sandwich.

Source: Ina Garten, The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook, Clarkson Potter, 1999.