The Best Meatloaf

This is my very favorite meat loaf recipe. It comes from Cook's Illustrated, and I've never found one to equal it. I always make a big batch of this and divide it into portions for two or three; those get frozen. I love knowing a quick dinner (well, quick in MY terms) is waiting in my freezer!

Meat Loaf with Brown Sugar - Ketchup Glaze

SERVES 6 TO 8

If you like, you can omit the bacon topping from the l0af. In this case, brush on half of the glaze before baking and the other half during the last 15 minutes of baking.

BROWN SUGAR-KETCHUP GLAZE

½ cup ketchup or chili sauce

4 tablespoons brown sugar

4 teaspoons cider or white vinegar

MEAT LOAF

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1 medium onion, fairly finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

¼ teaspoon hot red pepper sauce

1/2 cup whole milk, plain yogurt, or sour cream

2 pounds meat loaf mix (50 percent ground chuck, 25 percent ground pork, 25 percent ground veal)

2/3 cup crushed saltine crackers (about 16) or quick oatmeal or 1 1/3 cups fresh bread crumbs

1/3 cup minced fresh parsley leaves

6 to 8 ounces thin-sliced bacon (8 to 12 slices, depending on loaf shape)

1. For the glaze: Mix all ingredients in small saucepan; set aside.

2. For the meat loaf: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Heat oil in medium skillet. Add onion and garlic; sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool while preparing remaining ingredients.

3. Mix eggs with thyme, salt, pepper, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, pepper sauce, and milk, yogurt or sour cream. Add egg mixture to meat in large bowl along with crackers, parsley, and cooked onion and garlic; mix with fork until evenly blended and meat mixture does not stick to bowl. (If mixture sticks, add additional milk or yogurt, a couple tablespoons at a time, until mix no longer sticks.)

4. Turn meat mixture onto work surface. With wet hands, pat mixture into approximately 9 x 5-inch loaf shape. Place on foil-lined (for easy cleanup) shallow baking pan. Brush with half the glaze, then arrange bacon slices, crosswise, over loaf, overlapping slightly and tucking only bacon tip ends under loaf.

5. Bake loaf until bacon is crisp and internal temperature of loaf registers 160 degrees, about 1 hour. Cool at least 20 minutes. Simmer remaining glaze over medium heat until thickened slightly. Slice meat loaf and serve with extra glaze passed separately.

DONNA'S NOTES: I have stopped using veal in this recipe, and I usually use 1 pound of ground beef and 1 pound of ground pork. I use cider vinegar in the glaze. I’ve made this with milk, sour cream, or a mixture of the two to get the ½ cup. I use regular oats, and I usually don’t have any parsley. I only use bacon when I happen to have some handy. I package this in 1-pound packages and freeze them. I make extra glaze whenever I bake another loaf. I also don’t line my pan with foil. I use vegetable-oil spray, and my stainless steel pans clean up easily. I use any leftover glaze on my sandwiches the next day!