Michael’s Green Chili Meat Loaf

Wonderful flavors of New Mexico in this delicious loaf!

Hatch Chilis make the BEST enchilada sauce!

The nutrition facts are at Calorie Count!

Michael’s Green Chili Meat Loaf

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 medium yellow onion, diced (about 3/4 cup)
1 garlic clove, minced

1 medium green bell pepper, finely diced (about 1 cup)

1 bay leaf

2 Tbsp. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (or 1 Tbsp. dried parsley)

2 tsp. chopped fresh thyme  (or 1 tsp. dried thyme)

1 lb. ground beef, lean

1 lb. ground turkey, lean

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1/3 cup Ritz crackers, crushed

1/3 cup old fashioned oat meal

1 cup mild or medium green enchilada sauce (I recommend Hatch)

1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp. kosher salt

1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°.  Line a baking sheet with foil.  Spray a 6 X 10 inch baking dish with Pam cooking spray.

Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onions, garlic, and bay leaf until the onions are tender, about 3 minutes.  Add the bell pepper and cook until the pepper is tender. Stir in the parsley and thyme and cook for another 2 minutes. Remove pan from the heat and let the onion mixture cool. Discard the bay leaf.

In a large bowl, combine the turkey and beef, eggs, crackers, oats, 1/2 cup of enchilada sauce, the Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper and the cooled vegetables. Use your hands to mix everything together.

Transfer the mixture to the baking dish and form into a loaf on the baking sheet. Coat the meat loaf with the remaining 1/2 cup of enchilada sauce.

Bake for 1 - 1-1/2 hours, until the meat loaf is firm. Let sit for about 5 minutes before slicing. I suppose you could also try this with red bell pepper and red sauce.