Comfort Food at it’s Best…Barbecue Turkey Meatloaf
Meatloaf is the quintessential American meal. It’s nostalgic, hearty and just plain delicious. Most families have their special way to prepare it. I’m using a few flavorful and healthy twists. The first is to use barbecue sauce instead of the usual ketchup. It’s such a small change but adding the barbecue sauce makes it taste extraordinary. Next, you’ll save a tremendous amount of calories and fat by free forming the meatloaf. If you prepare it the way your Grandma did, in a loaf pan, the fat soaks into the loaf. With this new way, all the excess fat is left on the pan not in the loaf and then in your stomach. In addition, using lean ground turkey for ground beef cuts the fat. Just by making meatloaf this way, you save over 250 calories and more astounding 38 grams of fat per serving. The skinny for a generous 3 slice serving is 252 calories, 3 grams of fat and 6 Weight Watchers POINTS PLUS.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Bake Time 1 hour
Ingredients:
1 package ground turkey (about 1- 1¼ pounds)
½ cup plain bread crumbs
1 cup chopped onions
½ cup + ½ cup barbecue sauce (I like Sweet Baby Rays, Bull’s-eye or use your favorite)
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 egg whites
¼ teaspoon salt
Fresh ground pepper, to taste
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Line a baking pan or cookie sheet with foil.
3. In a large bowl, combine the turkey, bread crumbs, onions, ½ cup barbecue sauce, Worcestershire sauce, egg whites, salt and pepper and mix well until thoroughly combined.
4. Place meatloaf mixture in the center of the baking pan and shape into a 12 x 4 inch loaf by hand.
5. Spread the remaining ½ cup barbecue sauce evenly over the top of the loaf. Add more if desired.
6. Bake 1 hour and let stand for 5 minutes before slicing.
Serves 4
Food Fact
Nobody is quite certain about the origin of meatloaf. Most agree that it was a popular, economical meal to make during the Great Depression. In 2007 it was voted the 7th favorite meal in the America.
Prep Tip
If you don’t like messy hands when mixing the meatloaf mixture, put the ingredients in a large, plastic bag, seal it, then squish the contents together until well mixed.
Serving Tip
Serve this meatloaf with Dreamy, Dairy Free, Skinny Mashed Potatoes or Yummy Mashed Butternut Squash and a vegetable such as Simple and Delicious Roasted Asparagus. Another idea is to slice the meatloaf and make a hot sandwich served on whole wheat sourdough bread with lettuce and tomato. Yum…
Note: If you are looking to cut the points down, a 2 slice serving is still very satisfying- Weight Watchers (old points) 3 (for 2 slices)
Weight Watchers POINTS PLUS 4 (for 2 slices)
Weight Watchers (old points) 5 (for 3 slices)
Weight Watchers POINTS POINTS 6 (for 3 slices)
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SKINNY FACTS: Serving size, 3 slices (based on using 1 pound ground turkey)
252 calories, 3g fat, 34g protein, 23g carbs, 2g fiber, 862 mg sodium, 8g sugar |
| FAT FACTS OF MEATLOAF: 3 regular slices made with beef. 571 calories, 42g fat, 35g protein, 18g carbs, 1g fiber, 1123 mg sodium, 54mg calcium, 5g sugar |
January 18th, 2010 at 9:22 pm
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January 10th, 2011 at 5:14 pm
This looks great.
January 11th, 2011 at 7:32 am
My Mom always used corn flakes in lieu of bread crumbs, etc. I also use corn flakes. How would it alter the recipe if I used corn flakes? How would corn flakes affect the fat, etc., items?
January 11th, 2011 at 9:16 am
Sally, cornflake crumbs would taste delicious with this meatloaf. You can buy a box of crumbs in the baking aisle of the supermarket. Although we haven’t done the exact calculations, the fat and calories should be pretty close.
Hope you like the recipe!
October 11th, 2011 at 9:20 am
I have never tried free forming meatloaf. After looking at the calorie comparison, though, I am thinking it’s time to find some turkey and get out my latent play doh skills to form a meatloaf! The bbq sauce is a great addition, too.
October 11th, 2011 at 11:04 am
It’s really a simple way to make any type of meatloaf. Because all the fat oozes out onto the pan, it doesn’t give you indigestion either! Hope you enjoy this yummy version.
November 19th, 2011 at 1:27 pm
how do you prevent meal from being to dry…it was good, but mine turned out a little dry
November 19th, 2011 at 2:04 pm
o, by the way the points plus for the number of 3 servings is actually 11pts. so I cut mine into a serving of 5 for 7 points… It was very filling!!
November 19th, 2011 at 3:47 pm
Hi Tat,
The only reason why it might have been dry is if you used 99% fat-free ground turkey breast. The ground turkey that works best is one with a little more fat such as Jennie-O’s or Trader Joe’s ground turkey. They’re about 93% or 94% fat. This type is much more moist and when the meatloaf is cooked, all the fat oozes out onto the foil lined pan. I hope this helps for next time! Best, Nancy
November 19th, 2011 at 4:04 pm
Tat,
Thanks for your feedback. This entire recipe serves 4, (3 slices per serving). I just recalculated the Weight Watchers POINTS PLUS per serving and I still get 6 points. Here’s the link to the site that I use to calculate the points, http://www.calculatorcat.com/free_calculators/weight_watchers_calculator.phtml. You’re right that 2 slices is quite filling especially if you’re serving a few side dishes with it. Thanks again. Best, Nancy
November 19th, 2011 at 6:07 pm
Thanks Nancy, I will definately try this again.
January 12th, 2012 at 9:17 am
Hello,
I just calculated this recipe using the WW recipe tracker at Weightwatchers.com and I am coming up with much higher results…. Any idea why?
1 1/4 lb 93/7 ground turkey is 21 pts
1/2 cup plain breadcrumbs is 5 pts
1 C original bbq sauce is 13 pts
2 tbsp worcestshire sauce is 1 pt
Total of 40…
5 servings- 8 pts
6 servings- 7 pts
7 servings- 6 pts…
January 12th, 2012 at 4:43 pm
Hi Jessica,
Thanks so much for your comment. I just recalculated this recipe using a program called Spark Recipes. The meatloaf is free formed instead of being made in a loaf pan and most of the fat oozes out onto the pan. Because of this, I’ve done the nutrition facts based on 99% ground turkey even though this recipe calls for using 93/7. Here is the new calculations. Based on these, the Weight Watchers (old points) is 5 but the Weight Watchers POINTS PLUS is 6! I did make some of these changes to my site. In addition, I’ve now made it clear that these calculations are based on 1 pound of ground turkey. Thanks so much again for contacting me. I hope this new information helps! With best wishes, Nancy
Servings Per Recipe: 4
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 251.6
Total Fat: 3.0 g
Sodium: 862.1 mg
Total Carbs: 22.8 g
Dietary Fiber: 2.1 g
Protein: 33.9 g
January 28th, 2012 at 9:05 am
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