I love to share a dinner of classic comforting favorites. It's fun to alter these classics just slightly so that they maintain the traditional taste we all love while boosting the nutrient profile through the roof.
You see, I adore feeling like a super human.
Nutrient dense meatloaf ingredients
- 1 lb grass fed ground beef
- 1/2 lb grass fed ground beef liver
- 1/2 lb pasture raised ground pork
- 4 eggs from pasture raised hens, beaten
- 1/2 yellow onion, minced
- 3/4 cup organic tomato paste (try Bionaturae
)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 tablespoons fresh parsley, minced
- Sea salt and ground black pepper to taste (buy good quality sea salt here)
Nutrient dense meatloaf method
- Combine the Beef, Liver and Pork in a large mixing bowl and mix together evenly.
- Add Onion, Tomato Paste, Garlic, Parsley, Salt and Pepper to Meat Mixture and combine.
- In another bowl, beat eggs until combined and then add to Meat Mixture and combine
- Press mixture into glass bakeware
and bake in oven preheated to 375° for 35 minutes covered and for the last 10 minutes uncovered (45 minutes total) or until the center of your meatloaf is done.
**Note: If you're feeling squeamish and want to start slow with liver, try 1 lb ground beef, 3/4 lb ground pork and 1/4 lb liver.
Active time: 20 minutes
Serves: 8-10
This post was generously contributed by Monica Ford of Real Food Devotee. Monica's recipes will make your mouth water and your tummy purr. If you're lucky enough to live in Los Angeles, Real Food Devotee can make your life easier by delivering nutrient dense goodies directly to your door.
How do you ground liver or pork? Where can you get this? I get liver from our farm co-op, but it’s whole.
I second hat question!
Could you just run the liver through a food processor? Or would that change the texture too much?
You can put liver in the food processor. I’ve done this with heart too. Tastes great and is super-disguised for suspicious palates. 😉
Add some fermented ketchup and some bacon to the top before baking and that’s damn near perfect to me!
Back to the ground liver question: grind in food processor raw or cooked?
I grind it raw.
How do you add pepper and salt to taste to raw meat? 🙂
p.s. I am making this right now. I love meatloaf…looking forward to the first taste!
Hahahahah! You caught me, JoAnne. I actually do taste the raw meat mixture but, I taste everything and at every stage which makes for a pile of tiny spoons in the sink to wash!
1 1/2 teaspoon unrefined sea salt ad 1 teaspoon black pepper
So, who wants to see a future recipe on raw liver shooters? Warning: They will turn you into a super human.
Definitely want a raw liver shooter recipe.
Bring on the raw liver shooters!
p.s. I am making this AGAIN, it was so delicious the first time around! You know it’s good when it has made it on my table twice in two weeks.
On the grinding raw liver, I have never done it, but I have also seen it recommended to grind it frozen and partially thawed. Looks like Emily does it raw. So, whatever you have on hand, works either way.
JoAnne
I’m so glad you’re enjoying this recipe. So great for ur body! Great feedback on grinding up the liver! Thank u so much for Tami g the time to share that! xo
I made this for my family last night and it was a total hit! I wasn’t able to put the liver in it, though, because I went to 2 different Whole Foods and one farmer’s market and everybody was out of beef liver this week. I’m looking forward to trying it again with the liver next time. This was definately the best meat loaf I’ve ever had!
@Staci Wow!!! A for effort on that liver hunt. You go, you nutrient dense goddess, you!! xo
@Bebe Please let us know how your meatloaf turns out:)
I finally made it! With my own variations of course. 😉 1 1/2 lb. moose Polish sausage (raw, bulk sausage, not cured links), 1/2 lb beef liver (I already had it cut into small pieces, for easy liver shooter access you know) which I let thaw most of the way and then threw into my food processor and ground it up into a smooth ‘paste’ (for lack of a better word). The rest of the recipe was verbatim. I forgot to account for the salt already present in the sausage and it came out a bit salty but everyone said it was good. I also topped it with some homemade rhubarb ketchup, let it bake on, and served it with Melissa Joulwan’s (theclothesmakethegirl.com) velvety butternut squash and a cucumber salad. Yep. It’s a keeper. Thanks.
If your family is like mine and we fight to get the edges and ends of the meatloaf try this method!
Take the meatloaf out of the oven just before done (5-10min early) slice into portions and carefully lift out to keep intact. Place on dry griddle and dry fry on both sides until crispy. Then serve!!!!
Amazingness!!!
OMG @Kat Yum!
I made this recipe last night. The ingredients don’t indicate eggs, but the instructions say to add eggs. How many? We guessed and added two, but the meatloaf still fell apart.
Gah! Now I see the four eggs part….
I’m making a version of this recipe as I type. I shredded frozen grass-fed beef liver in the food processor. I added bacon ends and kale (omitted the parsley) to the liver and pureed, doubled the meat for the recipe, and added some coconut flour for firmness, two extra eggs, and four yolks (I had them leftover from the macaroons I made earlier). I then packed it in a 7 quart crockpot and set it on low. Hopefully, it should be good in 4 or 5 hours.
Hi Brian – That sounds great! Let us know how it turns out. 🙂
If I want to make this and freeze it for postpartum would it be best to freeze after combining the ingredients but prior to cooking or freeze it after cooking? Trying to figure out the easiest way for me since I will be strapped for time but needing the nutrients and still want it taste moist when I make it. Thanks!
I tried this with high hopes and could barely finish one piece…the liver texture was unbearable. Sadly I doubled the recipe because I had a pound of liver thawed. Huge waste of expensive meat 🙁
what size pan is this in?
Hi Jen, an average loaf pan should work fine.