Meat Loaves Italianos
Submitted by hikerhess
Italian-style mini meatloaves with oats, olives, and Italian seasoning, topped with tomato sauce and melted mozzarella. Individual portions that bake in 30 minutes with oven or microwave directions.
YIELD
4 servingsPREP
10 minCOOK
30 minREADY
40 minIndividual-sized meatloaves with an Italian twist cook faster and portion cleaner than one big loaf. Oats replace breadcrumbs as the binder here, and sliced olives mixed right into the meat add briny pops of flavor in every bite.
The tomato sauce does double duty. Half goes into the meat mixture for moisture and flavor. The rest gets heated with more olives, onion, and garlic powder, then spooned over the baked loaves as a quick finishing sauce. A shower of part-skim mozzarella melts over the top in the last two minutes.
Both oven and microwave directions are included, so these work whether you’ve got 40 minutes or 10.
Pro Tips
- Mix the meat gently. Overworking ground beef makes the loaves dense and tough instead of tender.
- Shape the loaves uniformly so they cook at the same rate. Uneven sizes mean some are overdone while others are pink inside.
- Drain the fat from the baking dish before adding the sauce and cheese. The sauce slides off greasy meatloaves.
- Let the loaves rest for 3 to 5 minutes after baking. They firm up and hold their shape better when sliced.
Variations
- Use ground turkey instead of beef for a lighter version.
- Add diced bell peppers and a pinch of red pepper flakes to the meat mixture for more color and heat.
- Swap mozzarella for provolone for a sharper, more robust cheese flavor.
Ingredients
Directions
Heat oven to 375℉ (190℃).
Combine oats, ¼ cup tomato sauce, ¼ cup olives, egg, 1 teaspoon onion, Italian seasoning and salt.
Add ground beef, mix lightly but thoroughly.
Shape to form four 4×2-inch loaves; place in 8-inch square glass baking dish or 9-inch glass pie plate.
Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until meat is done; drain.
Combine remaining tomato sauce, olives, onion and garlic powder; cook over low heat 3 to 5 minutes or until hot.
Spoon sauce over meat loaves; sprinkle with cheese.
Bake 2 minutes more or until cheese is melted.
MICROWAVE DIRECTIONS: Prepare meat mixture and shape into loaves as directed above.
Place in 8-inch square glass baking dish or 9- inch glass pie plate.
Cover with wax paper. Microwave on HIGH 5 to 7 minutes or until no longer pink, rotating dish once. Drain. In a 2-cup glass measuring cup combine remaining tomato sauce, olives, onion and garlic powder. Microwave at HIGH 1½ to 2½ minutes or until hot. Spoon over meat loaves; sprinkle with cheese. Microwave at HIGH 1 minute or until cheese is melted.
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