I finally got my hands on my mom’s basic meatloaf recipe with bread crumbs, and tried it out last weekend, and it was great. There’s something very nice about a simple, nourishing meal like meatloaf with a side of steamed veggies.

Basic Meatloaf Recipe with Bread Crumbs

INGREDIENTS

Meatloaf:

• 1-1/2 pounds ground beef1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
• 1 cup soft bread crumbs
• 1 egg
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, crushed
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Topping:

• 1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Measure 1/4 cup tomato sauce; combine with the two topping ingredients, then set aside.

2. Combine remaining tomato sauce with remaining meatloaf ingredients in large bowl, mixing well. Don’t over-mix, but insure that the ingredients are thoroughly combined.

3. Press meatloaf mixture into 9″ x 5″ loaf pan. Spread topping over meatloaf. Bake in oven 1 hour until center is 160°F and juices show no pink color.

4. Let stand for 10 minutes, then serve cut into slices.

The best thing about the basic meatloaf recipe with bread crumbs is that it’s simple and hearty – there’s no weird ingredients, you’ll likely already have everything, and there’s no fancy steps. Basically just mix it all together and put it in the oven! This is true comfort food for me.