"Meatloaf, smeatloaf, double-beatloaf. I hate meatloaf!"- Randy from movie "A Christmas Story"

How I became a Meatloaf Lover!

Anyone who knows me well, is aware that I don't really like eating meatloaf. Strange, but even though it is a classic American dinner entree, with recipes being passed down from generation to generation (my great-grandmother even had a go to recipe). I don't know what it is about it, whether it be the texture, taste, flavor combinations and so on, I just never liked it. That is, until tonight, when I decided to mix it up for dinner tonight. I did some research on, you guessed it...Pinterest, and found this Savory Sweet Potato Meatloaf recipe that promises to have great flavor. Of course, I know that when cooking a brand new recipe each individual and family will have different needs and taste preferences, and this recipe was great! I did substitute the flax meal in the original recipe for almond flour (I didn't have any flax at home) and instead of ground turkey, we opted to use ground beef instead.

So, without further adieu, on to the prep and baking process! 

Ingredients

• 2 lbs ground beef
• 2 medium sweet potatoes (Either skin on or skin off, your preference)
• 1 onion
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 Tbsp honey
• 1 egg
• 1/2 Almond flour
• 1 Tbsp Sea Salt
• 2 Tbsp Italian Seasoning

Preparation and Baking Process:

1. Wash sweet potatos, chop into 1"x1" cubes and steam until soft
2. Preheat your over to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
3. While the sweet potatos steam, pull out your food processor, put your onion, garlic, honey, egg, sea salt, Italian seasoning and almond flour and process until well mixed and onions are finely chopped
4. In a large bowl combine contents of the food processor with the ground beef and combine (I prefer to use my hands but use whatever technique you like. Set aside for later.
5. My sweet potatos were almost done (needed about 5 more minutes steaming), so I took this opportunity to wash and cut up some fresh broccoli to serve as the vegetable portion of the meal.
6. Finally, the sweet potatos were done steaming so I took them out and mashed them in a new and smaller bowl with a fork.
7. I put my chopped broccoli into the steamer at this time.
8. Combine the mashed sweet potato with the large bowl of meat, onions, garlic, etc. 
9. Now, with the amount of meat I used, I prepared enough to make 2 meatloaves, so take out 2 bread bowls (I used 1 bread bowl and 1 Pyrex container). I put both on the center rack of my oven and set a timer for 55 minutes. 
10. When the timer had only 40 minutes left, I removed the broccoli from the steamer and put it into a Pyrex container and stored in the microwave until I was ready to serve dinner. 
11. Once the timer has gone off, you're ready to serve!

^^^Here is what mine looked like^^^

Official Review of the Recipe:

Overall, we thought this recipe was delicious! It was juicy, savory, and had great flavor! Here were the cons for my family. If you are like us, and you don't like overly sweet foods, don't include the honey. It was a touch on the sweet side for us, and we felt that the sweet potatos alone enhanced the sweetness enough. We also thought there was a little bit too much onion flavoring and not enough garlic. My husband is Filipino and LOVES HIS GARLIC...so do I though, so can you say match made in garlic heaven??? Hahaha! Next time I make this, I am going to cut the amount of onion to 1/2 an onion and increase the garlic to 5-6 cloves (sounds like a lot...but it still might not be enough for us though!!! Gotta keep those vamps away, right???) Other than those details, it was an awesome meal for super cheap $$$! I would highly recommend this to any family! Enjoy! That's all from me for now! Happy healthy addictions! 

I found this recipe courtesy of Pinterest and fellow blogger:

http://www.livehealtheasy.com/2013/12/sweet-potato-meatloaf.html

Thanks for the great meal!