BBQ Bacon Stuffed Meatloaf

It's that time again!  What time?  Secret Recipe Club time.  Each month the participants in the Secret Recipe Club are assigned a blog.  It's up to us to read through it and choose a recipe to try.  We don't have to make it exactly as it's written on the blog but can make it our own.  If you'd like to see all the posts from each week, you can go to Secret Recipe Club.  This month I was assigned Big Bear's Wife.  Well, Big Bear's Wife is better known as Angie.  She's one of our den mothers.  They're actually called hostesses but I think they're more like den mothers.  Den mothers to a bunch of cats.  And, you know what they say about herding cats...  Now, don't get me wrong, I love cats - I just don't like to try and herd them :-)  Angie's an absolute sweetheart to herd us all along.  She tries to make sure we've got our posts in on time and that nobody gets left out or forgotten.  And, for folks like me who are totally technically challenged, she answers a ton of questions.  So, let's just say I was thrilled to get her blog!  As always, I read a ton of recipes and printed those I most wanted to make.  Then, I went back and read through the list again.  And again.  And again.  Finally, I decided to make Garlic Knots.  Delectable little rolls made from refrigerator biscuits.  I even bought the biscuits.  But, I kept looking at the bacon bbq meatloaf.  Then, fate. 


Duane and Becky came in Saturday morning to finish up some planning.  We started chatting about food.  Somehow, the conversation went to the mini-meatloaves my mom used to make.  They were glazed with orange marmalade.  Duane suggested adding some orange zest, crystallized ginger and orange liqueur to kick the flavors up.  About that time, Connie called from the farmers market to see what size shagbark hickory syrup to buy to tide us over for the winter.  Could he please get a pound of ground beef and a pound of ground pork when he was at the grocery?  I was determined to make Mom's meatloaves for dinner.  Sure he could.  Except he misunderstood and got TWO pounds of each. 

See what I mean?  Fate.  I was meant to make this meatloaf.  Yes, indeed.  Now, I changed the recipe more than a bit.  I used oatmeal instead of bread.  Healthier.  In an ocean of fat, every little bit of healthy helps.  And, I used half pork and half beef.  And, I added onion and barbecue sauce.  And, I used gruyere instead of cheddar.  So, for those of you who are purists and say a recipe should be made the first time as printed, fine, be that way.  I much prefer to make it my own. 

What did we think?  YUM.  Major YUM!  The photos of the meatloaf when cut and served were awful because it totally fell apart.  But, let me tell you, it tasted wonderful!!

Thank you so much, Angie :-)  We loved your BBQ Bacon Stuffed Meatloaf!  Click on the recipe name to see Angie's post.

BBQ Bacon Stuffed Meatloaf

Ingredients:

8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 large onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 T olive oil
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/2 - 1 c oatmeal
1/2 c 1% milk
2 eggs
1/4 c fresh parsley, chopped
2 T barbecue rub
1/2 t salt and freshly ground pepper
1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground pork
1 1/2 c shredded cheese (cheddar, gruyere, whatever!)
1/4 c barbecue sauce


Directions:

Saute the mushrooms, onion and garlic in the olive oil.  When they're softened, remove them from the heat.  Gently mix the ground beef, ground pork, sauteed vegetables, oatmeal, milk, eggs, parsley and salt and pepper.  Put 2/3 of the mixture in a 9x5 loaf pan.  Make a deep well in the center.  Put the shredded cheese and bacon in the well then top with the bbq sauce. 

Cover with the other 1/3 of the meat mixture and seal well.  Bake at 350 for about 90 minutes or until done.  After baking for about 60 minutes, glaze with some more bbq sauce.