I’m lucky enough to have some really great friends. Old friends, new friends, close friends, and long distance friends. As I was thinking about my friend line-up today, I realized my friends and I share an all-encompassing, very important commonality: a mutual love of bacon.
Misty, my best friend since tenth grade, likes her bacon chewy, not crispy.
Julie, my artist friend, loves her bacon wrapped around a cheese-filled jalapeno and grilled.
Nicole, my traveling companion friend, likes her bacon any way possible.
Allison, my favorite Massachusetts friend, likes her bacon on a slice of toasted pumpernickel with sharp white cheddar and an egg over easy (this girl knows what she wants).
Natalie, my chef friend, loves bacon in all forms and will cook you up something delicious at the drop of a hat.
Phil, my friend who loves to cook and eat with gusto, likes his bacon in the form of pancetta, which he makes himself.
And Jules, my blogging friend, likes her bacon in ornament form (click here to learn more) or layered evenly and prettily over turkey meatloaf. Being the dear friend that she is, Jules has agreed to share the recipe with us today.
Jules was definitely drinking while making this meatloaf
Prepare yourself to be amazed:
A year or two ago, when I saw we had ground turkey and bacon in the fridge, I decided to experiment.
The resultant recipe soon turned into one of my favorite go-to meals during the week, when I want to make something simple, hearty and delicious. I’ll whip up this feisty loaf on my lunch break and stick it in the fridge until it’s time to bake. (I wait to put the sauce on until just before baking.)
It’s nearly impossible to screw this up, so feel free to get drunk while making it creative. And if you don’t like spicy food? Use mild peppers and leave out the Sriracha sauce!
Spicy Turkey Meatloaf (with BACON!!!!)
Serves 4
Meatloaf
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/2 red onion, finely chopped
- 1-2 of your favorite spicy peppers, finely chopped (I like sereno, jalapeno and Habanero, or peppers from Peppermeister‘s garden)
- 1-2 T vegetable oil
- 1 egg
- 1/2 c. oatmeal (I use steel-cut; you can also substitute with bread crumbs)
- 3-4 oz. pepper jack and/or cheddar cheese, shredded (you can use just about any kind of cheese you like)
- 1.2-1.5 lbs. ground turkey (1 package)
- 6 strips of bacon, uncooked
- salt and pepper (to taste)
Sauce
- 1/2 c. ketchup
- 1/4 c. light brown sugar
- 3 T Sriracha sauce
Preheat oven to 350 F. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan and saute the onions, garlic and peppers until softened (about 5 minutes). Remove from heat and let cool.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the turkey, egg, oatmeal and cheese. Add the cooked onion mixture and salt and pepper to taste.
Form a loaf in a medium-sized baking dish or loaf pan.
Cover with bacon. There is no way to do this wrong, but the quality of the bacon will make a big difference, so don’t skimp if you don’t have to.
This is the reason my life feels fulfilled without children.
In a small bowl, combine the ketchup, brown sugar and Sriracha sauce and pour over the meatloaf.
Bake for 1 hour. Remove from oven and let stand 5-10 minutes.
Slice and serve!
This is fantastic the next day, too, if you can leave any!
Thanks for a bacon-licious idea, Jules! I love you (almost as much as I love bacon)! If you haven’t visited Jules’ blog yet, go see what she’s up to today on Go Jules Go.
