When my husband and I first got married, anything made with ground beef was not allowed in the house. He had grown up with parents who made a lot of ground beef recipes. Needless to say, we ate a lot of venison and chicken in those days.

Still to this day, he would rather have a steak or chicken than anything with ground beef. You can understand my surprise then when he came home one day and asked me to make a meatloaf recipe he had found.

This recipe is a bit different with a kick to it, but I make it to where my less-than-spicy palate can still eat it without my eyes watering.

It remains in our rotation of foods, and I hope it does for you as well!

How to Make Meatloaf Muffins

1. Gather Your Ingredients

I am a big fan of what the French call “mise en place” which loosely translates to “everything in its place.” When we start cooking, we want to make sure we have all our ingredients, have thoroughly read the instructions, and have a set plan for the entire meal, side dishes and all.

Therefore, I am also going to give you what sides I did. Before I began, I peeled and cut three potatoes, putting them in boiling water for mashed potatoes. Since I had the stuff out, afterward I washed my knife and cutting board and then reused it to chop the onion for this recipe. Now, onto the meatloaf.

For this recipe you will need:

• 2 lbs ground beef
• Two eggs
• 1/2 large onion chopped semi small
• 1 Tbls ground pepper
• 1 Tbls garlic powder
• 1 Tbls Lawry’s Seasoning Salt
• 1 Tbls crush red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 cup spaghetti sauce
• 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 3/4 cup breadcrumbs
• ketchup

2. Throw It All Together

You want to add in everything but the ketchup. Also, if you are one who likes exact measurements, you have it. For the seasonings though, I just eyeball it.

3. Mix How You Want

Okay, the original recipe* says to mix it by hand. I have a symptom that causes my hands to loose circulation when I am in areas or am touching something that is too cold; therefore, I use the kitchen aid mixer to mix our meatloaf up.

4. Place into Muffin Pan

Traditionally, meatloaf is made in a bread pan; however, my husband and I figured out that we can make it faster by doing individuals in a muffin tin. We like this better as well because there is no cutting involved, just pop it out of the pan and eat, or put in a baggie for lunch, or put in a baggie to go in the freezer for a busy night when cooking seems too tedious.

We cook the meatloaf at 400° at first for twenty minutes, then I take it out and add the ketchup for the last ten minutes for a total of thirty minutes in the oven.

Side Dishes: Most of my side dishes are started and finished in this thirty minutes. I pour canned green beans into a saucepan and add water to cover them. I place two bouillon cubes for each can of green beans. The potatoes are done, so I drain and add butter and milk before blending to a smooth consistency for mashed potatoes. Between the two side dishes, they are done about five minutes before the meatloaf, giving them ample time to cool.

Conclusion

This recipe is a winner at my house, even among the non-ground beef lovers, so if you’re looking to try something new but still traditional, try this and let me know what your family and friends think!

*The original recipe (which has been tweaked) comes from Jesse James. I am sharing the link with you but would like you to know that there is some foul language used if that bothers you stick to this recipe. If not and you are curious, head over to the West Coast Chopper’s Facebook post.