Slow Cooker Turkey Meat Loaf

Currently I am staying close to our own zen of slow cooking mindful intentions advice. As a mom and the co creator of our small business, a variety of challenges, albeit welcome ones, are thrown into daily life. Lately though, as our primary business focus has shifted to meeting the immediate demands of the Farmers’ Market in Lake Forest each Saturday to sell our organic spice blends, I’ve started to use my slow cooker to fill a weekend mealtime slot too.

Having spent the previous week carefully packaging our spice blends we’re ready to hit the ground running by 7am on a Saturday morning. Meg produces batches of our freshly baked slow cooker breads to share since it’s become a staple in our event repertoire. Lifting the lid on our warm raspberry choc chip or blueberry lemon breads baked inside the slow cooker in a loaf pan evokes a few “oohs and aahs” and “I never knew you could do that.”

There is great community spirit between vendors at the market and each has their own story, dedication and spirit. Like the lady who spends 10 hours every Sunday in a restaurant kitchen making Nana’s Rum cakes, because she had so many requests. We often set up alongside Nina who owns and runs Parterre Kitchen. Nina sources and packages gourmet salts from around the world in pretty jars sent from Italy while her stove bubbles with pots of teeny tasty wild blueberries she picks in Maine to make her delicious jams and preserves. The bison boys from Lester’s Bison Farm unload huge freezers groaning with fresh, organic and free range products, our new Daube Provençale Blend Recipe is delicious made with their buffalo stewing steak. Ric from Wisconsin drives down a truckload of fresh white fish from Green Bay, always welcome in a city so far from the ocean. The market has been steered to it’s success today by our friend Susan Kelsey at the Office of Economic Development in Lake Forest.

So when I arrive home, foot weary and all talked out, it’s a relief to find something cooked and ready to eat. The turkey meatloaf recipe this week is akin to the baked breads as it’s mixed in one bowl and scooped straight into a loaf pan for cooking. This can easily be prepped the night before and popped into your slow cooker without mess or fuss the following morning.

Ingredients

1 tbsp light  olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 ½  lb ground turkey or lean beef
1/4 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
1 egg
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp Italian Herbs
8oz jar roasted red peppers, drained and diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp worcestershire sauce
salt & pepper
1 jar of your favorite marinara or tomato sauce

Heat the oil in a skillet and gently saute the onion for 2-3 minutes until translucent. Leave the onion to cool while you mix the remaining ingredients.

In a mixing bowl, combine the turkey, breadcrumbs, egg, mustard, herbs, peppers, garlic, worcestershire sauce and seasoning.

Add the cooked onions to the turkey mixture and combine by hand or use a spoon.

Rub a small amount of oil inside a loaf pan. Push the meatloaf mixture into the pan. The mixture can be covered and refrigerated overnight at this point if you are cooking the next day.

Place a small piece of foil in the bottom of your slow cooker and set the loaf pan on top. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 hours.

Serve sliced with salad or creamed potatoes with your favorite tomato sauce on the side.

Zen Toolkit

Use leftovers sliced onto whole wheat bread spread with mustard and topped with greens for a tasty sandwich or cook this at the beginning of the week for school packed lunches.

Looking Ahead

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month so we’re creating a series of nourishing soups.

Zen Moment 

“I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.”
― Mother Teresa