Ground Beef and Lentil Meat Loaf

While going through the freezer clearing out the old to make way for the new, I found a chub of lean ground beef so I decided to try an idea I saw somewhere on the web. I'd give credit if I could remember where I saw it; I read a lot of blogs these days.

Also, I must mention that I am pretty much a fly by the seat of my pants kind of cook and rarely use an exact recipe; a little bit of this, a bit of that and in my book a glob is a measurement. It might have to do with the fact that before I made him move out, my drug-addicted son used all my metal measuring spoons to cook the (stolen) fentanyl he was injecting and I haven't been able to bring myself to go out and replace them....one day I might start blogging about addictions and Alanon and what I had to do to keep myself sane, but I digress....

So, post the recipe already!

Lentil Meat Loaf
1 pound of lean ground beef
1/2 bag of lentils, cooked in the 1 quart crock pot until they're very tender
2 or 3 carrots, shredded and added to the cooking lentils
A handful of oatmeal
2 eggs, or one egg and two egg whites
1 onion, chopped fine
salt
pepper
spices of your choice
catsup

Put the lentils in the crockpot and cover them with water. Add the shredded carrot. Cook until the lentils are very tender, because you will be smooshing them into the ground beef mixture. After the lentils are done, turn off the crockpot and let them cool. Place the ground beef into a mixing bowl, add the onion, egg, salt, pepper, spices, and oatmeal. I used basil, oregano, garlic, marjoram, and thyme, but I imagine it would also turn out well with a package of dry onion soup mix. Then comes the messy part; add the cooled lentil/carrot mixture and mix with your hands until the lentils are completely smooshed into the meat and the spices are well distributed. Top with a little catsup. Put the mixture into a pan and bake at 350 for about an hour.

Adding the lentils and carrots stretched this into almost two pounds of meatloaf; enough for one meal, a packed lunch for Hubby and myself, and another whole meatloaf to freeze. We liked it because it was didn't dry out like meatloaf sometimes does and this dish was full of fiber and nutrients. Using lean ground beef, this dish wasn't swimming in an inch of grease like it would be if you used cheap hamburger.