Reviewed: Oct. 30, 2011

I used neither the celery nor the carrot. Just too lazy. Used quinoa rather than oats and can't recommend it unless gluten is an issue. Even though the quinoa wasn't what I expected, the meat loaf was otherwise fantastic. I haven't had much luck with meat loaf but this was a winner. Thank you Patricia.

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Reviewer:

sandy

Reviewed: Oct. 30, 2011

Bacon always flavors everything but we never had it in a meatloaf. I’ve added shredded carrots to meatloaf but never added a can of stewed tomatoes or quick-cooking oats –which sounded interesting. Since I was in the mood to try something different I gave this a go. My family and I were not disappointed! The meatloaf was very moist and flavorful. I couldn’t even taste the oats and everything was blended nicely. The red tomatoes and celery added nice specks of color to the meatloaf when sliced. What was even better is that this includes vegetables and fiber! My family was surprised to learn there were oats mixed in the meatloaf. I served this with, “Montreal Steak Seasoned Mashed Potatoes, “ and “Creamy Mushroom Peas,” also from this website.

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Reviewer:

OkinawanPrincess

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

Reviewed: Sep. 25, 2011

GREAT! a wonderful way to get kiddos to eat vegetables. The oats also add plenty of fiber. Word of caution: be sure to cook it for the entire 1 1/2 hours even if the internal temperature is 165 sooner. If you take it out too soon, then the vegetables will be too hard and the texture will be off a bit.

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Reviewer:

hoffpauirdvm

Reviewed: May 9, 2011

Oh, wow! A really, really fantastic recipe! I am not a fan of any mince dish at the best of times. I had run out of cooking ideas and decided to make this and serve it cold, sliced on fresh Portuguese rolls (with the addition of Swiss cheese) at a picnic. Instead of ketchup, I mixed ½ a packet of cream of tomato soup with ½ a cup of water, and poured this over the top of the loaf before I baked it. The tomato soup is sweetish but not overpowering or overly sweet as some ketchups can be. It also becomes very thick and almost sticks to the meatloaf like a thick basting. I also added about a Tablespoon each of freshly chopped parsely and oregano, as well as 3 chopped garlic cloves to the mince mixture. Patricia's addition of oats to this mixture creates a wonderfully moist texture - a tip I learnt in South Africa, where they traditionally add oats to bulk up meat or mince dishes and moisten the end result. Wonderful recipe which I have made time and time again! Serve it with a side of coleslaw, roast potatoes and candied carrots.

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Reviewer:

Brad

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa

Reviewed: Apr. 19, 2011

This was great. I used quinoa instead of oats. Next time I will omit the onion soup mix and season myself along with sauteed onions. I found it too salty.

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Reviewer:

sheenstar

Reviewed: May 4, 2010

I rated it 4 stars because i made some adjustments. I left out the celery and added worchestershire sauce to the mixer. It turned out fantastic. Being my 1st attempt making meatloaf, im thrilled that it turn out great. Will definitely make it again.

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Reviewer:

Peggy Ng

Reviewed: Apr. 25, 2010

Yummy! My 5 year old loved it. Didn't have stewed tomatoes on hand, so I used Frog Ranch Salsa; also used ground turkey and turkey bacon. Thanks.

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Reviewer:

Patriotlady

Reviewed: Feb. 14, 2010

Interesting as well as delicious! This was so fun to try and I'm glad I prepared it as the recipe directed. I admit I was tempted to leave out the carrot only because it was unusual, but I thought I'd take a chance and used it - it was great! You really didn't notice the flavor but it did add nice flecks of color and the extra nutrition doesn't hurt either. Similarly with the tomatoes - I've never used canned, chopped tomatoes in meatloaf and this, too, was a pleasant surprise. I mainly chose this recipe because it called for oatmeal as the filler but the combination of ingredients created a most interesting flavor you couldn't quite put your finger on because they all blended so nicely. Hubs likes gravy with his meatloaf so I came up with a creative one, given I had leftover canned tomatoes. I made a roux of flour and butter, added the tomatoes which I pureed, a good amount of beef broth and a glug of red wine - delicious, richly flavorful and the perfect complement to this very tasty meatloaf.

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Reviewer:

naples34102

Supporting Member (Click to learn more about Supporting Membership)

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA

Living In: Mequon, Wisconsin, USA

Reviewed: Feb. 10, 2010

I have made this more times than I can remember. My husband likes it exactly the way it is.

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Reviewer:

sandhillgirl

Reviewed: Dec. 25, 2009

I omitted the carrots and celery and used the bacon grease to grease the pan, then drained the fat after an hour in the oven. Best. Meatloaf. Ever. I might use 4 slices of bacon next time though. Two doesn't seem like enough.

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