This Ain't Yo Mama's Meatloaf

I may not be good at sewing, gardening, cleaning, or most things domestic, but I CAN cook!

I had a hankerin' (that's right, I said hankerin') for meatloaf yesterday. But I didn't feel like the plain old tasteless hamburger slices that come to mind when I think of meatloaf. I went online and started looking up recipes. I found one that sounded interesting, so I changed it up a bit to make it even better (actually just so I didn't have to go to the grocery store--teehee). This is what I ended up with and MAN oh MAN! I had to unzip and lay down afterwards from the sheer exhaustion of saying "mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm............." and "ooooooooooooooohhhhhhhhhhhhh" so many times!

Italian Meatloaf

1 T Olive Oil
1 med onion, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
2 large cloves garlic, minced
2 t italian seasoning
3 T fresh italian parsley, chopped
1 c grated parmesan (the kind in the canister is fine for this--seriously, save your good stuff for something that doesn't cook an hour)
3/4 c breadcrumbs
1/4 c pinenuts
2 eggs
1 T balsamic vinegar
1 T worchestershire sauce
1 lb ground chuck (do NOT use 90% lean--use 80% or you will have DRY meatloaf)
1 t salt
1/2 t black pepper
1 c marinara sauce (jarred or canned is fine--remember this cooks for an hour)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Over medium heat, saute onion and red pepper in olive oil until just softened. Add garlic and cook 1-2 minutes more. Remove from heat, add italian seasoning, mix, and place in a large mixing bowl to cool.

When pepper and onion mixture has cooled to room temperature, about 15 minutes, add the remaining ingredients, except marinara sauce, and mix until well blended (it's okay to get your hands dirty and squish around in there). Pack down into a greased loaf pan. Spread the marinara sauce evenly over the top.

Bake for 55-65 minutes until a thermometer inserted in the middle of the meatloaf reads 160. Let sit for 10 minutes.

Put on your fat pants and chow down! I served this with pesto smashed red-skin potatoes and char-grilled summer squash medley. Mmmmmmm...

I made Jdub the hub a meatloaf sandwich for lunch today. Do you think he'd notice if I took a bite?