what's for dinner wednesday - not your mom's meatloaf

not that there's anything wrong with mom's meatloaf!  traditional meatloaf is classic comfort food and traditions can be fantastic.  but sometimes i like to take tradition and toss it on its end.  as is the case with my new favorite way to make meatloaf.  it's turkey quinoa meatloaf and not only is it very tasty but it is also pretty healthy for you too.  obviously you substitute the ground beef with ground turkey but some of my less granola-y readers may not be familiar with the other main ingredient in this dish.  quinoa (pronounced keen-wah) replaces the breadcrumbs or cornflakes.  quinoa is a super food.  why is it so super you ask?  well let me tell you.  it's packed with beaucoup amounts of protein and all the nine essential amino acids. super.  i served this loaf with a side of roasted potatoes and brussel sprouts.  and it was utterly delicious.

first, cook the quinoa according to directions.  to serve 4, i used 1 package of ground turkey (about 1.25lb) and 1/3 cup of quinoa.

those take about 15 minutes to cook and cool so while that's happening, wash and cut up the potatoes.  i like the medley because they're such pretty colors.

next, chop the ends off the sprouts and slice in half.  this trick take the bitterness out of them.

add some olive oil to the bottom of the casserole dish.

throw in the potatoes and sprouts.  season and toss with more oilve oil and/or butter.  i'm not good at measuring.  i usually throw in whatever seasonings strike my fancy at the time and i kind of eyeball it.  this time i used sea salt, ground peppercorn, garlic, red pepper flakes, and some balsamic vinegar.

 now the quinoa should be cool enough to handle.  mix the ground turkey with 1 egg, the quinoa, some seasoning salt, worcestshire sauce and hot sauce.  you can add onion as well but i didn't this time.  hot sauce is to taste.

put the mixture into the loaf pan (treated if it's not non-stick), and sprinkle the top with parsley.  put everything in the oven at 350 for an hour.

and voilá!  add more hot sauce if you like.  we're big fans of sriracha around these parts...

 TURKEY QUINOA MEATLOAF

Ingredients:

ground turkey 
large egg(s) - use 1 egg for every pound of turkey
hot sauce
worcestershire sauce - 1 tbsp per pound of meat
seasoning salt - 1 tbsp per pound of meat
diced onion
olive oil 
quinoa - 1/3 C per pound of meat
water - 2/3 C per 1/3 C of quinoa

Instructions:
1. put the quinoa and water in a saucepan.  bring to boil and cook for about ten minutes.

2. put the ground turkey and all other ingredients except the quinoa into a large bowl.

3. mix thoroughly.

4. place the quinoa in the bowl and mix it in.  DON'T BURN YOURSELF. make sure the quinoa has cooled off!

5. place mixture in appropriate size baking dish. Sprinkle some parsley flakes over the top to add some color.

6.  cooking time depends on the dish your baking in, your oven's characteristics, etc. i bake the 1 lb. meatloaf, uncovered, for 1 hour and then check to see if it's done.  don't overcook it. you want it to be moist.