Turkey

I was at the dentist one morning (the entire morning) for teeth cleaning for 5 kids, and read about an Italian turkey meatloaf that looked tasty. I came to the conclusion that I had never bought or made anything with ground turkey in it. I went out on a limb and tried it. I think almost all of the kids said it was a keeper and I thought it was different but yummy. When you're only use to ground beef, turkey may be a tad odd, but way less fat and not so bad. So, I will share my new recipe with you and encourage you to try something new. I made pasta and sauce to go with it and you could make it into a meatball, but too much work for the time I had. Also, it made enough for two meals, and we all had a good portion, so you may want to divide it in half.

Italian Meatloaf

2 pounds lean ground turkey
1 C. Fine Italian bread crumbs
1/2 C. ketsup
1 C. Grated mozerella
1 C. finely chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 C. chopped parsley-fresh
2 tsp. thyme
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups pasta sauce

Heat oven 350*
1. Oil large jelly roll or roasting pan, set aside.
2. Combine all ingredients EXCEPT pasta sauce in large mixing bowl. Using your hands, toss ingredients lightly to evenly distribute them, then knead the mixture well.
3. Transfer mixture to baking pan, shaping into a loaf, about 12" long and 5" wide. Bake for 40 minutes, then remove from oven and spread 1 cup of pasta sauce on top. Keep baking the meat loaf until it is cooked through, about 35 more minutes. Allow loaf to sit in the pan 15 minutes before slicing. Serve with more pasta sauce, if desired. 8+ servings.