Nobody makes a meatloaf as good as grandma and she’s proven that with this recipe.

I am a major fan of meatloaf and always have been. My mother would make a killer meatloaf recipe that even my picky-eater brother would chow down. Her secret? Lipton’s onion soup mix. You can’t forget that one special ingredient. However, the following recipe for Treasure Meatloaf doesn’t use onion soup mix and it tastes better than any meatloaf I’ve ever had. Sorry, mom! This treasure meatloaf has CHEESE in it.

Audrey, from the Melady Cooks food blog, was ever so kind to put this treasure meatloaf recipe out there for all of us to enjoy. thank you, Audrey!

Are you super stoked to get this wonderful recipe in your possession? Happy cooking!

Ingredients

Meatloaf:

2 lbs ground beef
1 egg
1/2 cup saltines; crumbs
1/4 cup onion; finely chopped
1/2 cup green pepper; finely chopped
1/2 cup Heinz ketchup
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 dash McCormick cayenne
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon coarse pepper (I add more)
1 teaspoon Morton salt
6 slices Kraft American cheese

Sauce:
1/2 cup chili sauce
1/4 cup Domino brown sugar; packed
15 oz can diced tomatoes
1 can mushrooms; drained
1 small can Hunt’s tomato paste
1 1/2 teaspoon mustard; prepared
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon basil
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1 bay leaf
1 dash Red Hot Tabasco sauce

Instructions

Meatloaf

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Mix together all ingredients except cheese in large bowl. Shape half of mixture and press into loaf pan.

Press a 1/2″ ridge of meat up the side of the pan. Place layer of cheese in trough.

Shape and press the rest of the meat mixture over cheese layer.

Bake meatloaf for 40 min. Make sauce while waiting for meatloaf (see below for recipe).

Remove meatloaf from oven and drain excess fat and liquid from pan if necessary.

Pour half of sauce over top of meatloaf and bake 20 min longer.

Let stand for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

To make sauce:
While meatloaf is baking, add sauce ingredients to a saucepan. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to medium low and simmer for 20 minutes.
When the meatloaf has baked 40 minutes, remove bay leaf from sauce and pour half over the meatloaf. Bake 20 minutes longer.

Refrigerate or freeze rest of sauce for another time.