Recipe Meatloaf, Meatballs and Hamburger Recipes And Ideas

[Kathy in FL]

Meatloaf, Meatballs and Hamburger Recipes And Ideas
from: http://www.livingonadime.com/meatloaf-meatballs-recipes/#comments

Buy 5 pounds or more of hamburger and prepare your favorite meatloaf recipe. Then form part of it into any combination of the following:

•1 or 2 meat loaves
•meatballs
•mini meat loaves (the size that will fit into mini loaf pans)
•portions that will fit into muffin tins
•form the rest into nice sized patties

Lay everything out on cookie sheets and freeze. When frozen, place into freezer bags. When you need something quick for dinner, just pull a bag of something out of the freezer.

Here are some ways to use your meatballs and frozen hamburger treasures:

•Spaghetti and meatballs
•Mini meat loaves- The smaller they are, the faster they cook. The mini meat loaves cook quickly, but the muffin tin size cook even faster.
•Smothered steaks- Fry the hamburger patties and make a gravy to go over them. Serve with tater tots, a veggie and a salad.
•Bacon steaks- Wrap a piece of bacon around a hamburger patty and then fry it. Serve with French fries, baked beans and coleslaw.
•Smothered meatballs- Slow cook the meatballs in a can of Cream of Mushroom soup for about 20 minutes. For that extra something, add a little sour cream at the end of the cooking time. These are great over rice or noodles.
•Meatloaf- Last but not least, simply serve a good old meatloaf dinner. You can serve it with mashed potatoes or better yet toss in some baked potatoes to cook at the same time as the meatloaf.

When making meatloaf, you don’t have to bake it separately from the rest of the meal. You can make it a one pan dish by adding potatoes, carrots and onions before you bake it. Add a little brown sugar to any meatloaf recipe to bring out the flavor.

•If you are getting tired of having to carefully form another hamburger patty for the barbecue, here’s an easy trick my mom always used to make her hamburger patties. Tear some wax paper into squares. I usually tear strips about 6 inches wide, stack them together and cut the strips in half. This doesn’t have to be perfect. You’re making squares that are just a little bigger than your hamburger patties. Now lay a wax paper square down, set a ball of hamburger on it and top with another piece of wax paper. Take a plate and gently press the ball to the thickness that you would like.
•If a meatloaf recipe calls for a little milk, use buttermilk instead. This will give you a more tender meatloaf.
•Instead of pouring ketchup on top of your meatloaf, try this glaze on it:

Meatloaf Glaze Recipe

1/4 cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 tsp. cider vinegar.

Mix and pour on meatloaf about 15 minutes before it is done.

If you use this meatloaf recipe for any of the above purposes, you will probably want to use ketchup instead of the barbecue sauce that is mentioned in the basic meatloaf recipe.

Basic Meatloaf Recipe

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
1 cup milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. dry mustard
1/4 tsp. pepper
3/4 cup quick cooking oatmeal or 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
1 egg
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup ketchup or barbecue sauce

Mix everything together except the ketchup. Put into a loaf pan. Spread ketchup over the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until done. Serves 6.

 

[Deemy]

I like to use some sauage in my meat loaf...it isn't as dry and sometimes I put strips of bacon on top.

 

[Lilbitsnana]

I like to use some sauage in my meat loaf...it isn't as dry and sometimes I put strips of bacon on top.

I've never made a dry meatloaf, but I don't make mine like the recipe above.

 

[Lilbitsnana]

Mom used to make what she called Hamburger Hash.

Ground beef
chopped onion
cubed potatoes (1-2 inch)
salt and pepper to taste
water to cover by a few inches

brown the beef and onions, drain
add the pototoes
cover with water and season to taste
cook until potatoes are tender
reduce down to desired thickness


Basically, all quantities are just based on how much you have. She made it a lot when Dad was layed off one year back in the 70s, but we liked having it other times too.

 

[coloradohermit]

My MIL had a favorite easy hamburger recipe
Grandma's Delight casserole

1/2 onion diced
1 lb ground beef
1 can whole kernel corn, drained
1 lg or 2 small can chef boyardee type spaghetti and tomato sauce(not meatball)
1/2 cup shredded cheese, cheddar or colby

Saute diced onion in a little butter or oil until just tender, remove from skillet. Brown hamburger all crumbled, not patties. Return onion and add the remaining ingredients. Mix well and heat through in skillet or in the oven in a casserole dish.

 

[Lilbitsnana]

I've never made a dry meatloaf, but I don't make mine like the recipe above.

I don't measure anything when I make my meatloaf, but I give the basics if anyone wants to try it.

ground beef (I usually use 3-5 lbs, but you can use however much you want, just adjust up/down on ingredient qty)
chopped onion (1/2-1 medium or large onion )
bread (I don't actually count, but usually 4-8 slices)
milk (1/4 - 1/2 cup or so, enough to soak the bread in)
1 egg (beat into milk: I have made it w/o egg if I didn't have one)
dash or two of worcestershire sauce (optional)
salt & pepper to taste
Ketchup (add some to mixture and some for top of loaf)

soak the bread in the milk, tear into pieces

mix beef, onion, woceshershire and bread pieces together

add enough ketchup to to make it moister, but not so moist it won't hold it's general shape when patted into a loaf (squishy but firm)
use a loaf pan or any size baking dish with sides

cover top of loaf with ketchup

will make 1-2 loafs (sometimes I make it one big loaf or two in one pan)


bake 375 for 1 hr or until done (depending on size, big ones take longer)

variations:
sometimes I add diced green bell pepper (I like it but DH hates bellpepper )
Sometimes I add part of a can of soup and less milk and ketchup; I like to add ABC vegetable beef soup sometimes, but usually cream of mushroom or celery


I know it's not much help, but I never measure anything, sorry.

 

[BertaBurtonLake]

Sloppy Joes

2 pounds ground beef, browned, drained and set aside
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 of a bell pepper, diced
2 8 oz cans tomato sauce
1/2 cup ketchup
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 tsp dry mustard
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

In a skillet, saute the onions, celery and peppers until soft and transparent. Add all other ingredients except ground beef. Stir well to mix and simmer over low heat for about 15-20 minutes, until thickened. Add the browned, drained ground beef and mix to combine. Cook an additional 5 minutes on low. Serve on buns.

 

[BertaBurtonLake]

Pastitsio

Although this recipe usually calls for ground lamb which we always have as we raise them, it is equally good with ground beef.

1 pound penne pasta, cooked al dente and drained
2 pounds ground beef (or lamb)
1 large onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
1/2 cup red wine (may be left out if not on hand)
1 small can tomato paste
2 cups water
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375F. In a large skillet, cook ground meat with onions and garlic until the meat is browned and the onions soft. Spoon off excess fat and ad the red wine. Cook until the wine is absorbed. Add the tomato paste and water. Mix well and simmer until thickened. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat and mix in the cooked penne. Put in a 9x13 casserole dish.

Topping:

6 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup AP flour
3 cups of milk
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
cayenne pepper, to taste

Melt the butter and whisk in the flour to make a roux. cook for a couple of minutes and add the milk, whisking constantly until smooth. Cook stirring occasionally until thickened. Remove from heat and add the cheese, stirring until all is melted in and the sauce is smooth. Season, to taste, with cayenne and add salt, if needed. Pour sauce over meat/penne mixture in casserole and bake for 35-40 minutes. Allow to stand 15 minutes before serving.

 

[BertaBurtonLake]

Cheeseburger Macaroni Skillet Supper

Seasoning Mixture:

2 Tbsp cornstarch
1 Tbsp paprika
2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp garlic powder
1-2 tsp salt
(optional: 1/4 cup good quality cheese powder)

Mix all of the above together in a small bowl and set aside.

2 pounds ground beef
2 cups hot water
4 cups of milk
3 cups uncooked macaroni
2 cups of grated cheddar

Brown the beef in a deep skillet. Drain the eat and return to the skillet. Add the water, milk, and prepared seasoning mix. Stir until seasoning is evenly distributed and dissolved. Bring almost to a boil and add the macaroni. Reduce heat to medium low and cover. Simmer, stirring occasionally to keep macaroni from sticking, for about 20 minutes or until macaroni is cooked to your liking. Remove from heat and let stand, uncovered, for about 10 minutes before serving. The sauce will thicken while it stands.

Chili Mac and Taco Mac can be made using the sae methodology as above, substituting spice mixes.

Chili Mac Seasoning Mix

2 Tbsp chili powder
2 Tbsp cornstarch
2 tsp garlic powder
1-2 tsp salt
1-2 tsp sugar (optional)
1 tsp paprika

Taco Mac Seasoning Mix

2 Tbsp corn starch
1/4 cup bulk taco seasoning (or 1 package)
1 tsp ground cumin

 

[ReneeT]

I am frequently able to get 4lb+ packs of ground round/ground chuck for $2.99/lb; we use it several different ways.

If I find at least 10# at that price, we lightly brown it, then can it in pint jars - I add a broth made from dilute onion soup mix to my canned ground beef - that way I don't have that 'dog food' smell when you open the jar The canned ground beef can be used in any manner that you would use cooked ground beef - sloppy joes, cassaroles, pasta sauce, etc... One of Hubby's favorites is to make a cream gravy, using evaporated milk and the seasoned liquid from the jar; then adding the ground beef.

Sometimes we lightly brown the ground beef and vac seal it in pint bags; to be used as above.

One of our favorite recipes is for skillet 'goulash'. I use a large, non-stick skillet and dump in a jar of canned ground beef with liquid; then add in some dried onions (not a lot as it is canned in onion soup mix), and dried red and green peppers, a bit of chopped garlic (or Aldi's garlic-inna-jar if I'm feeling lazy lol), a heaping tablespoon of Italian seasoning, I let that simmer a bit, then add in a can of diced tomatoes with garlic and olive oil and a can of tomato sauce, rinsing each can with water and adding that water to the skillet. I dump in a cup of pasta - usually macaroni - and stir it around until the mac is cooked; adding more liquid as needed. If it needs thickened, I'll add tomato paste a tablespoon at a time. I like to make this when our 17 year old step-grandson will be here for dinner as it makes enough to fill him up (with dessert added, of course lol!)

And sometimes I'll make up meatloaf, using a recipe I got from a friend - we call it 'Mmmm..' for 'Mike's Marvelous Meatloaf Mix' lol.
2# ground beef
8oz can tomato sauce or 1 cup catsup
1 egg
1/3-1/2 cup bread crumbs (if you rinse the can or measuring cup with water and add that to the mix, you'll need the higher amount if you use the leaner ground beef)
1 pkg onion soup mix (the stuff is a pantry staple here; I'm never below 20 boxes on hand_
Mix together and let rest for a bit before cooking. You can add other items or substitute - cracker crumbs or oatmeal for the bread crumbs, onions and seasoned salt for the onion soup mix, diced tomatoes for the tomato sauce, green/red peppers, mushrooms, etc... but I am not a fan of 'things' in my meatloaf after a memorable week in college where I went to an out of state seminar with no other food sources within walking/biking distance and the meatloaf had all of the previous week's leftover veggies mixed in - ick!!!

This mix is usually frozen in vac seal bags in meatloaf, patty, or meatball form, although I have lightly browned the meatballs and canned them in either dilute cream of mushroom soup for 'Swedish meatballs' or BBQ sauce. We like to cook the meatloaf patties on the grill - no skillet or cassarole dish to wash lol! - but as Kathy noted above, they do make a great smothered steak - we like to lightly brown the patties, then lightly fry green/red pepper and onion strips in the leftover fat; add them to the top of the patties, then make a dilute brown gravy and pour over the top before baking - the gravy thickens as it bakes. We also use this mix - adding in 1/2 cup uncooked instant rice to a pint vac bag of mix to make stuffed pepper 'boats' - cutting the peppers along the lobes to make the boats; then packing in the meat mix, putting in a crock pot, and topping with spaghetti sauce. An entire stuffed pepper is too much for even Hubs and I to share, so these work well for us. Any leftover patties can be crumbled and used in Sloppy Joes, pasta dishes, cassaroles, etc...

 

[FireDance]

Kathy. You're not getting with the program. You have to ditch ground beef now. Get some cabbage, slice it, slather with olive oil add salt and pepper and be glad you have it. Moochelle has lots of great ideas if you get with it. /sarcasm

I think I will try to do meatloaf this weekend as it sounds pretty darn good.

 

[1eagle]

delete

 

[Kathy in FL]

Kathy. You're not getting with the program. You have to ditch ground beef now. Get some cabbage, slice it, slather with olive oil add salt and pepper and be glad you have it. Moochelle has lots of great ideas if you get with it. /sarcasm

I think I will try to do meatloaf this weekend as it sounds pretty darn good.

Don't laugh but I've honestly had to start reverting to all of the "meatless" meatballs, patties, and loafs that I used when we were first married and had the youngest of our kids. And that's back when you could get good hamburger for 99 cents/lb and milk was a buck a gallon. I remember right after we got married milk went up to $1.05/gallon and hubby and I just about had a fit. Lord that feels like a million years ago on some days.

I still make a pretty mean bean burger. My daughter made "mashed cauliflower" the other day and brought me some to try ... my oldest who is experimenting due to her own budget restrictions. Wasn't bad after she had added some cheese to it but cauliflower isn't my fave. In returned I showed her how to make mashed for just about any kind of root veggie. And then showed her how to make them thick and use the result concoction to make fried patties from. She is all excited now and I see a lot of unusual dinners in my son-in-law's future. LOL.

 

[freshPotatoes]

Kathy I'm intrigued.. what do you use to make the mashed root veggie thick ?

 

[Kathy in FL]

Kathy I'm intrigued.. what do you use to make the mashed root veggie thick ?

Depends, most of the time I just use a little instance mashed potatoes or a very little bit of flour. Why I say it depends is just how dry your root veggies are. I like to roast mine and then mash them and that gives a "dry" mashed veggie. Boiling gives you are "wetter" mash. Plus the longer a veggie has been in storage the drier it is going to be. Sometimes I don't have to add anything at all when I am scrapping the bottom of the vegetable bin.

If the veggies are too dry to mash properly then you can add a little bit of olive oil, milk, butter, sour cream, or whatever you have on hand. I will sometimes add cornmeal to my bean patties and the come out tasting like an old fashioned croquette.