I’m one of the 15 food and diet/health blogger invited to the Quaker Oatmeal Living Proof Weekend November 7 to 9. (You can learn more about it at This Mama Cooks! On a Diet, my food and diet blog.)

I’m very excited about it, especially the blogger cook off. To prepare, I’ve been checking out Quaker Oatmeal’s recipe website where I found a terrific meatloaf recipe . Ironically, my daughter Lucie seems to have outgrown her egg allergy. (If your child has egg allergies, check out these recipes for eggless meatloaf.)

My family loved this dish and my kids made a point to tell me it was an A++ with them.

(And if you’re wondering about the Burt and Ernie book, you can read about it at Don’t Forget the Oatmeal!)

Greek-Style Meatloaf

Meatloaf ingredients:

• 1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef (I used 2 pounds of ground venison. You could substitute ground turkey, too.)
• 3/4 cup Quaker® Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion (I used a whole medium onion. I like a lot of onion in my meatloaf.)
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
• 1 teaspoon salt (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Toppings:

• One 14-1/2-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
• 1/4 cup sliced ripe olives
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
• 1 cup (4 ounces) crumbled feta cheese (I used the low fat kind)

Preparation steps:

1. Heat oven to 375°F. For meatloaf, combine all ingredients in large bowl, mixing lightly but thoroughly. On rack of broiler pan, shape beef mixture into 9-inch round loaf. (I used a silicon baking mat on a cookie sheet, which worked out fine.)
2. Bake 30 minutes. Remove meatloaf from oven. Arrange tomatoes and olives over top of meatloaf; sprinkle with oregano and cheese. Return to oven; continue baking 8 to 10 minutes to medium (160°F) doneness, until not pink in center and juices show no pink color. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting. To serve, cut into 6 wedges.

Cook Tips and Variations

• For easy shaping of meatloaf, line 9-inch round cake pan with plastic wrap, allowing 2 inches to extend over edge of pan. Firmly press beef mixture into lined pan; invert onto rack in broiler pan. Remove pan and plastic wrap.
• We had to leave for karate just as the meatloaf was done. I turned off the oven, and tented the meatloaf with a piece of foil. When we came back an hour later, the meatloaf was still hot and not dried out.
• Go Italian: Sprinkle dried basil and mozzarella cheese on top of the meatloaf along with diced tomatoes.
• Go Mexican: Substitute 2 teaspoons of taco seasoning for the oregano, salt and pepper in the meat mixture. Top with salsa or Southwestern style chopped tomatoes and peppers. For the cheese use the shredded Mexican blends or a mixture of jack and cheddar cheese. If you have access to Mexican cheese, try Queso Fresco, which is mild and crumbles easily.

Recipe Yield: 6 
Serving Size: 1/6 of recipe
Nutrition Information:

Calories: 480, Calories from Fat: 310, Total Fat: 34g, Saturated Fat: 14g, Cholesterol: 115mg, Sodium: 740mg, Total Carbohydrates: 16g, Dietary Fiber: 3g, Sugars: 2g, Protein: 28g

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