Simple and easy...

The other night I was pressed for ideas and time to get dinner on the table. After looking in the almost bare fridge and halfway stocked freezer, I came up with this dinner plan. It was simple, easy, and tasted delicious. My husband and kids were raving about the meal afterwards. There are just a few ingredients to make a great wholesome meal. A few tips are thrown in along the way for good measure.

Easy Meatloaf

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

1 1/2 lbs. ground meat (I usually buy turkey burgers when they are on sale and keep them in the freezer. I use turkey burgers for everything - tacos, meatloaf, chili, etc. For this meal I used 4 frozen ground beef patties that remained from a box of burgers and 1 frozen turkey burger patty.)
1/2 c. bread crumbs
1/2 packet of Lipton Onion Recipe Soup and Dip Mix (I only used 1/2 of the packet to reduce sodium intake.)
(I usually put an egg in my meatloaf but this time all my eggs were gone and there was no time to run to the store. Usually I would ask the neighbor but since we recently borrowed butter from her I didn't want her to think we were dependent on her for our groceries! So, I opted to try it without the egg...and the results were yummy.)

Thaw meat*. Here's a tip - if you have granite counter tops, put the meat on the counter top to thaw. Keep the meat in its plastic wrapping. Flip it occasionally so it evenly thaws. If you don't have granite counter tops, thaw meat as you normally do.

​Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.

Put mixture in a glass or metal loaf shape dish and place in oven for 30-35 mins. until meat is no longer pink in the center.

Easy Potatoes

6-8 medium size Idaho or russet potatoes 
1-2 T. olive or canola oil
1/2 packet Lipton Onion Recipe Soup and Dip Mix

*Time management tip - while you are waiting for the meat to thaw, clean the potatoes. Cut into wedges or cubes - your choice. We like the skin on but if you like the skin off, peel potatoes.

Put potatoes in a large bowl. Lightly coat with 1-2 T. olive or canola oil until all potatoes are glistening. Take the remaining 1/2 packet of the onion soup mix (that you used for the meatloaf) and coat the oiled, glistening potatoes. When the mix is evenly distributed on the potatoes, place evenly on a baking sheet.

Put the potatoes in the oven (with the meatloaf) at 400 degrees for 25 mins. To make sure potatoes are done stick a fork in them. If they are still al dente, bake for 5 more minutes.

Easy Veggie

1 bag frozen green beans (We used PictSweet.)

Heat the green beans or whatever frozen veggie of your choice according to package instructions.

This meal was easy, required only a few ingredients, and was a winner with the family.

Another meatloaf variation - you can put ketchup or barbecue sauce on top of the meatloaf for the last 5 mins. of baking.

As for just using 1/2 a packet, not only do you get less sodium but you also get twice as much yield and it doesn't compromise the flavor.

Happy eating!

#simplemeal #delicious #easy #neighbors