This recipe also uses our Balanced Bites Spice Blends - which you can shop here!
Ingredients
- 8 ounces mushrooms, any kind
- 1 tablespoon cooking fat of choice
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 1 medium carrot, peeled and diced
- 1 stalk celery, diced
- Sea salt and ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, leaves and stems, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh mint, leaves only, finely chopped (about 1/2 ounce)
- 2 tablespoons coconut flour
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 2 teaspoons GREEK or TRIFECTA Spice Blend
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 pounds ground beef or turkey
- 2 large eggs, beaten
FOR TOPPING
- 8 slices bacon (about 12 ounces), cut in half
- Fresh cilantro leaves
- 2 tablespoons ketchup, homemade or store-bought
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Wipe any dirt off the mushrooms and place them (including the stems) in a food processor. Pulse until they’re in very small pieces—not quite as small as grains of rice, but almost! Set aside.
Melt the cooking fat in a medium-sized skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, and celery, season with a few pinches each of salt and pepper, and cook, stirring every few minutes, for 7 to 9 minutes, until the onion and celery become translucent and begin to brown and the carrot softens. Add the mushrooms to the skillet and cook for about 5 minutes, until they brown and release most of their water.
While the mushrooms are cooking, in a small mixing bowl, combine the fresh herbs, coconut flour, spices, and salt and pepper.
Place the ground meat in a large mixing bowl and then pour the eggs over it. Sprinkle half of the herb-and-spice mixture evenly over the meat and combine the ingredients with your hands. Add the cooked vegetables and mushrooms, then add the remaining herb-and-spice mixture. Mix with your hands to incorporate all the ingredients.
TO COOK IN A LOAF PAN:
Place the meat mixture in a 8 by 4-inch loaf pan and place the bacon slices on the top. Set the loaf pan on a rimmed baking sheet.
TO COOK ON A WIRE BAKING RACK:
Set a wire baking rack on a rimmed baking sheet. Form the meat mixture into the shape of a loaf and place on the rack. Place the bacon on top of the meat.
Cover the loaf with foil and bake until its internal temperature reaches 160°F, about 1 hour, removing the foil halfway through to allow the bacon to crisp up.
At the end of baking, if the bacon needs more time to brown, switch the oven to broil for 2 to 3 minutes. (If you’re cooking the meatloaf in a loaf pan, you may need to drain the pan about three-quarters of the way through baking, as the meatloaf may release a fair amount of liquid.)
Garnish with cilantro and drizzle with ketchup before serving.
Notes
NIGHTSHADE-FREE?
Omit the paprika and add 1 teaspoon more each of ground cumin and ground cinnamon. Omit the ketchup and consider topping the meatloaf with a drizzle of pesto instead.
Time Saving Tip
To save time, buy prechopped mirepoix—a combination of onion, carrot, and celery. It's perfect for this recipe.