This Marvelous Million Dollar Meatloaf Recipe Is Worthy of Every Cent by Donna John

My husband and I grew up eating entirely different styles of meatloaf. His mom made meatloaf with corn in it and ketchup on top, while mine liked to top her meatloaf with cream of mushroom soup. Needless to say, my husband thinks ketchup is a must when making meatloaf, though he tries all the different meatloaf creations I come up with. When I saw a Southern Living recipe that elevated the ketchup topping, I knew I had to try it. I'm happy to report that this ground beef meatloaf recipe was a success with all parties involved in eating it!

The secret ingredient in this million dollar meatloaf recipe is pepper jelly. The jelly is stirred into the ketchup and adds another layer of flavor that's a little sweet and a little spicy. To make this fancified meatloaf recipe you will need lean ground beef, buttery crackers, evaporated milk, Worcestershire sauce, sea salt, black pepper, eggs, garlic, onion, ketchup and pepper jelly (or another jelly of your choice). The moist meatloaf bakes up in about an hour in the oven.

Cooking Tip: Grating the onion on a box grater produces thinner pieces of onion and releases the juice, which adds more flavor. If you don't have a grater with large holes, you can simply dice the onion.

Serve this easy meatloaf for dinner with your favorite side dishes. Because the meatloaf is so moist, the leftovers heat up will for dinner or lunch the next day. Or grill them up and make a meatloaf sandwich! 

Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour (approximately)
Total Time: 1 hour and 10 minutes
Servings: 6  

Ingredients

Meatloaf

• 2 pounds lean ground beef
• 1 1/2 cups crushed buttery crackers (I used Ritz)
• 2/3 cup evaporated milk
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 teaspoons sea salt (or to taste)
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper (or to taste)
• 2 eggs
• 4 garlic cloves, minced fine or pressed (original recipe called for 2 cloves)
• 1 medium onion, grated on the large holes of a box grater (see Recipe Notes)

Topping

• 2/3 cup ketchup
• 3 tablespoons pepper jelly

Here's how to make it: 

1. Put all the meatloaf ingredients (not topping) into a mixing bowl. (I used Ritz crackers, but any buttery cracker would work. I would not use saltines, as they would not add the rich, buttery flavor this meatloaf needs to be worth one million dollars! If you don't have evaporated milk, you could use heavy cream or half and half.)
   
2. Mix until combined.
   
3. Form the mixture into a loaf in an aluminum foil-covered baking dish or baking sheet. Bake in a preheated 350-degree F oven for 35 minutes. (I used my Le Creuset 13x9-inch baking pan, but any baking dish big enough to hold the loaf or a baking sheet will work just as well.)
   
4. While the meatloaf bakes, put the ketchup and jelly into a small bowl. (If you don't have pepper jelly or don't want any spice to your meatloaf, use another jelly like apple-horseradish (delicious!), peach, apple, pear or whatever you like. The jelly elevates the ketchup and adds another sweet flavor dimension. Don't skip it!)
   
5. Mix well. Set aside.
   
6. Remove the meatloaf from the oven at 35 minutes.
   
7. Spread the ketchup mixture over the meatloaf. Return to the oven for about 30 more minutes or until meatloaf is cooked through (165 degrees F internal temperature).
   
8. Let the meatloaf rest about 5 minutes before slicing and serving.
   
   

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