Cooking Light Mini Turkey Meatloaves

Mini things are cute. In fact, I'm pretty sure that mini versions of something are one of Rules of Cute. Which means this meal is not only delicious and easy, it's also adorable.

Well, as adorable as a pile of meat can be.

And when I say it's easy, I mean it's SUPER easy. Can you throw a pile of ingredients into a bowl? Can you use a scoop to put it in a muffin tin? Then you can make this recipe. Sure, it also calls for browning some onion first, but honestly you could probably skip that step (as long as you like your onion a little crunchy).

Seriously, just throw all the shit into a bowl. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

I'm talking about Cooking Light's mini turkey meat loaves. I came across this recipe while perusing a cookbook owned by a friend. These little meatloaves are packed with protein and flavor and at 142 calories a pop, you can double your portion size to feel extra full without the guilt.

A couple alterations I made to the recipe: I used Italian seasoning breadcrumbs instead of the regular bland kind (you'll find that they pack a lot more of a delicious flavor punch). I also used dried parsley instead of fresh; unless you have a herb garden it's not worth the trouble or expense. Finally, I skipped the step where you brush the top of the loaves with the ketchup mixture; I just dumped the ketchup and hot sauce into the bowl and mixed it all up with the meat and other ingredients.

Oh, and I doubled the recipe to get three meals out of it. But you could easily make up to a dozen of these suckers if you are feeding a crowd.

Mmmm....turkey balls. 

Cooking Light's Mini Turkey Meatloaves

Ingredients 

Cooking spray
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 ounces ground turkey breast
1 large egg white
3 tablespoons ketchup, divided
1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (such as Tabasco)

Preparation 

Preheat oven to 350°.

Heat a small skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from heat; cool slightly.

Combine onion, breadcrumbs, and next 7 ingredients (through egg white) in a large bowl. Stir in 2 tablespoons ketchup. Spoon about 1/2 cup meat mixture into each of 3 muffin cups coated with cooking spray; place muffin tin on a baking sheet.

Combine remaining 1 tablespoon ketchup and hot pepper sauce in a small bowl. Brush ketchup mixture over meat loaf tops. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until a thermometer registers 165°.

If you double the recipe, you also bake the mixture into one eight by four-inch loaf. Bake time may increase to about 45 to 50 minutes; use a thermometer to check for an internal temperature of 165°.