Huntress Meatloaf

One of my all time favorite comfort food meals is old fashioned meatloaf with mashed potatoes. There is just nothing like pulling one out of the oven and piling your plate with the warm meaty goodness and eating it on the sofa in your jammies! Or at the dinner table with family and great friends. I have been perfecting this recipe for years, changing things here and there but the one secret ingredient has remained constant: barbecue sauce. My husband is not a big fan of tomato sauce or cooked tomatoes at all so before I discovered this little gem of a substitution I couldn't get my hubby to eat meatloaf. That's almost a cardinal sin where I come from! But alas, my meatloaf recipe has the stamp of approval from my entire family. I hope your family enjoys it too!

Huntress Meatloaf

1 lb ground venison

1/2 lb ground beef

2 eggs

1 cup + 1/4 cup barbecue sauce, divided (my favorite is Head Country due to the smoky flavor)

2-3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

3/4 cup bread crumbs or rolled oats

1/2 large onion finely diced

4-5 garlic cloves finely diced or grated

salt

pepper

4 cups of your favorite mashed potatoes

3-4 strips crispy bacon, crumbled

4 tbsp butter, sliced into pats

Mix meat, eggs, 1 cup barbecue sauce, Worcestershire sauce, bread crumbs, veggies and seasonings in a large bowl using your hands. Smush, squish, knead, and fold until it is well combined and everything is evenly distributed. Place in a large loaf pan or a casserole dish (technically not a "loaf" anymore but that's ok). Cook in a 400* oven for about 30-40 minutes, or until no longer pink in the center. Because venison is so lean you are not likely to have much fat rendered during the cooking process but if there is some grease standing on top of meat loaf, drain it off. Next top the meat loaf with the remaining barbecue sauce and spread it over the surface, pile on prepared mashed potatoes, crumbled bacon and pats of butter and return to the oven for another 10 minutes or so. Plate up a big helping with your favorite side salad and dinner is served!