meatloaf question

[Llyra]

Most recipes seem to call for bread crumbs, to stretch a meatloaf. I don't have any, since we don't eat much wheat. Would stone-ground cornmeal work? I have plenty of that.

[425lisamarie]

I use oats . Not sure about cornmeal, the point of bread is not just to stretch but to draw/soak up moisture and retain a tender texture. I don't think cornmeal would do that. You can skip it, or add a couple eggs. The fat from the yolks will keep it moist and the whites bind it.

ETA: as far as stretchign the meat I often use a lentil/or bean puree and some veggie puree or saute.

[Llyra]

Yeah, you're probably right about the moisture. This is grass-fed beef, too, so it's lean to start with.

I will use egg to bind it, but I need it to be bigger, KWIM? I can't really eat oats, either. Even corn is pushing it a bit, for me.

What about mashed winter squash? I have a whole roasted butternut squash in the fridge, leftover. I could mash that up... Hmmm...

Thoughts?

[425lisamarie]

Originally Posted by Llyra

Yeah, you're probably right about the moisture. This is grass-fed beef, too, so it's lean to start with.

I will use egg to bind it, but I need it to be bigger, KWIM? I can't really eat oats, either. Even corn is pushing it a bit, for me.

What about mashed winter squash? I have a whole roasted butternut squash in the fridge, leftover. I could mash that up... Hmmm...

Thoughts?

that would work, or you could puree the squash with some beans. Beans are "stiffer" like KWIM? if you use lots of squash make sure to use a couple eggs

[Kirsten]

I guess I'm not helpful - as I use oats too. I also shread carrots and dice celery and onion to add in. Rice? I've never tried it but it seems like it might work?

[Magelet]

rice works too. don't know if that's helpful. the texture changes a bit, but it tastes good (as long as you don't add too much oatmeal or too much rice in which case it falls apart.) (cooked rice and oatmeal of course.)

[cristeen]

You could use the cornmeal, but you would have to cook it and cool it first, or it'd be crunchy. And you'd definitely need egg to help bind it.

You can use just about anything to stretch the meat... lentils, beans, virtually any cooked grain, most any vegetable, hard-cooked chopps eggs, mashed potato, etc. Each one will provide a slightly different texture, and might need different levels of additional binding (eggs), but they'll all work.

[Earth Momma]

puree the squash (I put pureed veggies in everything) shredded cabbage works, shredded potatoes but add an extra egg!

[Llyra]

Well, what I wound up doing is making it with the mashed squash, AND just a bit of cornmeal, and it worked okay. I used two eggs, and it held together just fine. It tasted so GOOD, too, because the squash added a sweet dimension to it.

Thanks for the ideas! I'm gonna try rice next time. I'm only just working some grains back into my diet...

[Happily Blessed]

I found a wonderful "mexican meatloaf" recipe from weight watchers that called for cornbread stuffing. It was good, it wasn't my favorite because it was 1/2 ground turkey and 1/2 lean ground beef. But I think that if you do just lean beef it would be great.

[medicmama]

I never thought of corn meal, good idea! i always do shredded zucchini

[snowbunny]

I don't use any grains in mine, and just use a couple of eggs as binding. It works really well.