Turkey-Vegetable Loaf

Twenty million years ago or so, I bought a cookbook called The Low-Fat Epicure by Sallie Twentyman.  It has quite a few good recipes in it, but I'd never tried this one for Turkey-Vegetable Loaf.  I was kind of excited; I had visions of filling a meatloaf with lots of healthy additions and my family being none the wiser.  Well...

Turkey-Vegetable Loaf

1.25 lb ground turkey
1 small onion, grated and squeezed of excess juice
1 cup fresh spinach or grated zucchini, well packed and squeezed of excess juice
1 large tomato, chopped
1/4 cup minced celery
1 cloves garlic, pressed
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
4 slices fresh bread ground into crumbs (about 2 cups)
2 egg whites
1/2 cup ketchup

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Combine all ingredients except ketchup, and mix well.  Press into 9 1/2-by-5 1/2-inch loaf pan and spread ketchup over top.  Bake 1 hour, or until turkey loaf is no longer pink in middle. 

2.  Remove from oven, drain off juices, and let sit 5-10 minutes before serving.

The Verdict:  Surprise!  Or not so much--the toddler could spot green flakes from 10 miles away.

In addition to my son going on a vegetable safari (picking out anything he thought might possibly be a vegetable), I found it to be kind of bland.  And plain ketchup spread over the the top?  Just plain yuck.  You could at least mix in a little Worcestershire and brown sugar to create a somewhat tasty glaze.  Instead, it was gelatinous ketchup.

I was happy that the loaf stayed in a loaf shape.  My meatloaves are notorious for crumbling into heaps, so that was one win.  However, I think I'll take what I learned and apply it to a meatloaf that, um, tastes good.