Have you seen the recipe for the Wegman’s Turkey and Sage Meatloaf? https://shop.wegmans.com/recipes/2121/turkey-sage-meatloaf

If the recipe has already been posted, I apologize. I skimmed.

Lean ground beef is another way to go. That's how I always make it, no pork and the 92% lean which I can get locally. Turkey still has less fat. Ground beef is getting super expensive, particularly the lean ground beef, so that's another reason to try the turkey. I might try my had again at a turkey meatloaf, for hubs and I. I am trying to eat as lean as possible due to elevated cholesterol . . . some interesting recipes here!

I’m craving meatloaf now, Mmm. I’ve always made it my Mema’s way, old-fashioned with the glaze. She put mustard and brown sugar in with the meat and veggies.

I’ve never had it with anything but beef or beef/pork mixture. A local restaurant makes a very tasty barbecue meatloaf with beef and pork. The sauce is sublime.

I use ground chicken for lettuce wraps and we like turkey Polska Kielbasa on the grill (or fried up with other stuff).

Anywayrambling, now I want to try turkey meatloaf. These shared sound so good.

pinkmountain.....some people don't eat pigs, cows or baby animals.

arkansas....Jennie-O is the ONLY ground turkey we can get here. It's just not that popular. In Colorado your either a BIG meat eater....or on a plant based diet. We're moving towards a plant-based diet. ♥

Thanks, Bbstx. I did have wegman's recipe-- I should have shared that. I was just wanting to branch out a little more. Their recipe is fine-- as I said, i do like it-- but I guess I wanted something more interesting... or just different.

Ive never made turkey lettuce wraps-- i know i would love them. Sounds like a perfect light meal for spring.

not all gr. turkey is created equal

You can say that again.

I generally make meatloaf with ground turkey. It goes back to when we used to not eat red meat and I subbed turkey in meatloaf and meatballs. I don't use a recipe, but I add an egg and some binding ingredient, e.g., breadcrumbs or oatmeal. I always used Jennie-O because it was available where I shopped.

A couple of times I've bought ground turkey from Trader Joe's and I think it's awful. It's too wet and the results aren't good. I used to think all ground turkey was alike, but it's not.

Sounds delish-- and so quick! Thank you! 😍

my husband is a great cook and always tries to improve old recipes. Not gonna lie, I prefer the Lipton recipe over anything else. With mashed potatoes and gravy (never tomatoes).

Meat loaf is a "treat food" and I don't want or need it to be elevated, LOL.

One useful tip I do have though: get your ground turkey from a good butcher instead of the prepackaged supermarket stuff. I was skeptical and then surprised at how much better the flavor is!

It likely doesn't matter so much for a Lipton soup recipe, but the other things we make with it have been massively improved by this one change.

My grandma wasn't a very good cook but her meatloaf wss amazing. I lost the recipe but it had equal parts ground beef, pork, and Italian sausage.

I have found that turkey meatloaf is significantly improved by including a good amount of pork sausage. :)

Lipton Onion Soup is great with a crockpot roast. Tina, one time I chopped the onion really fine for the meatloaf, and I used quite a bit. When DH was eating he asked if we were out of onions. lol. I don't chop it in large pieces, but large enough to get the individual onion taste.

I always use oats or cracker crumbs, never thought about combining them.

I've been a strict vegetarian for about 20 years and mostly vegetarian for the last 25, and half Jewish for 61 years, so yes Nicole, I do know that some people do not eat pigs, cows or baby animals. I never liked beef, almost never eat it, so don't have much concern over its rising price. But I cook for my meat-eating father and husband, which is why I mentioned their likes and dislikes. Way different than mine. I don't much have to "move away" from a meat-centered diet, I'm already there and moving more towards veganism due to concerns over saturated fat. Like I said, I'm down with wheatloaf too . . .

But, on topic, I had to pick up a prescription at the grocery pharmacy today so compared ground turkey prices with ground beef, similar fat content profile. Ground turkey was $2.70/lb. cheaper. So going to happily try some of these recipes!! Hubs is on board with it. Dad is never on board with anything I do so not a concern. I made cube steak for him last week, stuffed with bacon and covered in a gravy made from the pan juices. I only had one bite to make sure it was edible. It tasted great, like all those super fatty things do, but one bite was enough. Red meat usually gives me indigestion . . .

yes, where you buy your meat makes a difference. we try to buy directly from a producer, although we do have a good meat shop in the big city.

my sister makes a delish loaded ”potato” casserole with mashed cauliflower. the mr. who hates cauliflower, had no idea he was not eating potatoes!! 😂

we do not have any medical problems that would cause us to not eat meat/beef, but we do limit the amount of meat we eat.

l pink, i'd love to hear more about wheatloaf. There's sure a lot of variation online. What's good? :)

Here's my favorite recipe for ground turkey:

Gyoza

• 2 minced green onions
  2 tsp minced ginger
  2-3 cloves minced garlic
  2 tbsp minced basil (optional)
  1 tbsp black rice vinegar
  1 tbsp soy sauce
  1 tsp chili paste
  1 tbsp corn starch
  1 egg, lightly beaten
  1/2 cup chopped spinach
  2-3 finely chopped mushrooms
  1/2 pound ground turkey
  one package round dim sum wrappers (about 24-30)
  grape seed oil, for sautéing
• Dipping Sauce:
  1/4 cup soy sauce
  2 tbsp sesame oil

If you want to use a mini food processor, you can put the onions, ginger, garlic, basil, vinegar, soy sauce, chili paste, and cornstarch in it a process until everything is sufficiently minced. Otherwise, do the mincing by hand, and then stir together with the rest of the ingredients, except the wrappers and grape seed oil.
Fill the wrappers with about a tablespoon of the mixture and moisten one edge so that you can make a seal when you fold it over. Be sure the press out all air before sealing.

When all are filled, sauté for 2-3 minutes on each side at high heat in the grape seed oil in a large sauté pan that has a good cover. When browned on both sides, add a tablespoon or two of water, cover, and reduce heat to simmer. Allow to simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until done.

Cooking time will depend on how big they are.
Mix the soy sauce and sesame oil in a small shallow bowl for dipping.

I also use this recipe to make small meatballs that I add to Udon noodle soup. I'm not sure if it would translate into meatloaf, however.

Lars, I use a similar ingredient list for ginger-garlic chicken meatballs. Never thought to use it for gyoza which I LOVE. Thank you so much!

Of course IG saw me on this thread, and this came up on my Feed:

https://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-easy-juicy-turkey-veggie-meatloaf-256065

It has sweet potatoes as a binder. And apple. Sounds interesting … like the article says, a fall vibe. I might try it.

I got this in the early 90's from a friend named Rachel. I just happened to have posted a memory for her on FB, so have the photos of the recipe card, the wheatloaf and a wheatloaf sandwich. You could cover it with a tomato-based topping or serve one on the side too. It's not low-fat because wheat germ, cheese and walnuts are all high in fat, including saturated fat in the cheddar cheese. But it is tasty. Sorry Funky, hope you don't mind the ramble . . .

Thank you for sharing that, Pink … my DD and her SO are vegan, I’ll send it to her. :)

They’ve been making vegan meatloaf, but I don’t know the ingredients. With yours, they can easily modify.

Ooo thanks so much! This looks pretty good!

ETA: this confirms my belief that vegetarian options are never bad as long as there is ample cheese. :)

The best meatloaf I've ever had in my life was in a meatloaf sandwich at the Presidio Social Club in San Francisco. So rich and delectable I suspect it was made with beef, pork, and (sob) veal. I die just thinking about it.

I don't have food restrictions for myself anymore (except no veal if I can help it). A little of what you fancy is my motto. In reality, I don't eat a lot of meat. I do make hamburgers once a week and the cost of ground beef is more than I used to pay for a steak. Good thing I don't eat a lot of it.

One of my fave things for ground turkey are burgers. Lots of chopped onion and finely shredded cabbage, well seasoned, egg, breadcrumbs, etc. The cabbage and onion caramelize on the edges and it really is great all on its own, not as a substitute for anything else.

really is great all on its own, not as a substitute for anything else.

I forgot to mention this, but I think this is the key to enjoying non-beef variations of all kinds

I used to make a Cooking Light turkey meatloaf for years that I liked but the last time I made it I found I didn't like it so much anymore. I saved that Turkey Meatloaf with BBQ Glaze recipe from the Once Upon a Chef website and will probably make it at some point.

I can't remember the last time I used ground beef for anything other than a nice burger on the grill. I always use ground turkey in place of hamburger in recipes and hot italian turkey sausage in lieu of regular hot italian sausage. We both have family history of heart disease so pretty much save the red meat for steaks or burgers on the grill - things for which there is no substitute. Well I guess there is impossible non-meat but I prefer to eat stuff that is not processed to seem like something it's not.

Don't laugh, but I made this BBQ Pork and Apple Meatloaf last week using this Hello Fresh recipe. I used half of a very sweet apple to make ours (no leftovers). DH LOVES meatloaf, and I have cooked my fair share the last 40yrs. We both said this was our favorite.

Regarding making the "Wheatloaf" recipe vegan, I don't think that is a good idea. The good taste and texture come from the eggs and cheese. If I wanted the flavors but not the egg and cheese, I wouldn't try to bind it all together. Vegetarian "loafs" are notoriously hard to make well, IMHO. Meatloaf gets its texture from the protein strands of the meat, it is traditionally made with bits and bobs of cut up meat, a plant based filler, usually oatmeal or bread crumbs, and eggs to bind it together. About the only type of plant protein that has the texture of meat is seitan or textured vegetable protein. But I don't know how to bind them together in a good tasting and textured way without resorting to eggs. The closest thing I have come to something hanging together would be something like a black bean burger or falafel patty, that is fried. I'm sure there are vegan binders, but you just won't get the delicious taste of "wheatloaf" without the eggs and particularly without the cheese.

To go vegan, I'd use wheat berries or bulgur wheat as a pilaf, reconstituted sundried tomatoes and then use the spices and walnuts and maybe caramelized onions and mushrooms for the "unami" that you would get from cheese. Throw in some dark red kidney beans, lentils or baked tofu for a complete protein and serve with roasted smashed butternut squash and steamed broccoli. Could do breaded and fried summer squash . . . in the summer.

Another way to get a "loaf" appearance for a vegan would be to stuff something loaf shaped, like making stuffed cabbage or chard rolls, or a hollowed out zucchini or peppers. All good, with a similar presentation to meatloaf, although completely different taste . . . The ingredients for "wheatloaf" sans eggs and cheese and tomato sauce also might be good inside a baked hollowed out tomato, although I have never made such a thing. I've done baked onions, but not tomatoes . . . yet.

Pink, thank you! It’s still very new to me, so I’m grateful for the information and advice. :)

We (dh and my kids) love the lipton recipe i dont like meatloaf but do love turkey burgers wirh a shake of Montreal seasoning. when i make meatloaf for the gang, I usually take it to the next level vey Guy Fieri

(I only do this a few times a year )

I like the Martha Stewart recipe….it has bacon on top, and a sweet glaze. Baked with onions and fingerling potatoes around it!! OI just leave the bread crumbs out….never miss them. I dod not do ground turkey, because it is ground at a plant, and has nitrogen in the package, and who knows what else to precerve the color….that makes me sick just thinking about it. If my butcher shop had not blown away in the tornado, and he would grind some fresh, I might like it..

LOL.. i was waiting for someone to suggest/bring up a bacon wrap. I am perhaps an outlier-- but i really dislike bacon on other meats. A bacon burger almost turns my stomach. But I think the really cool thing is how adaptable and variable meatloaf recipes are.

I am learning so much. Was unaware people make meatloaf with ketchup. My favorite is a Teriyaki or one you roll thin slices of ham up in and cook in a 9x13 as suggested early on--but both those are beef. Turkey would take more of a binder I assume. So many things I just sub out ground turkey for beef and rarely did my family notice...soups/chili/hot dishes...they did however balk at the turkey meatballs I purchased, premade, super sale. They bounced!!!

I can say this here because none of my family reads gardenweb/houzz-- but i really dislike my mother/sisters' meatballs. They are like beef bombs-- i suspect it is the dried breadcrumbs or a bad proportion? The binder is so important in beef as well as turkey or chicken. I typically use fresh breadcrumbs (not crackers, not oatmeal) and if an italian dish, i use a fairly large amount of parmesan with the breadcrumbs. I don't use milk or broth either-- though i know that is common in some recipes.

The other thing i learned for both meatloaf and meatballs is to not over season the meat mix. Ina Garten's meatball recipe was my inspiration. It's very simple... and i get rave reviews on my meatballs from family and friends (I don't usually serve meatloaf to others lol)

I use fairly concentrated broth made with BTB or Knorr stock pots. Gives an extra beefy flavor and also adds some spice profiles to the meatballs in addition to the ones I add in. But my meatballs are kind of wet and I have to use a small ice cream scoop tool to form them and drop in simmering butter + wine and stock or drop on parchment for the oven. My family LOVES meatballs (my DH grew up on a cattle ranch) and we eat them with pasta and make sandwiches with them.

Yesterday we were out looking at apartments for the girls and we stopped at Whole Foods for a quick lunch. Thanks to y'all, I got their mushroom (and beef) meatloaf from the hot food bar, along with mashed potatoes and broccoli slaw. My family looked at me like I had 6 heads. I've had their broccoli slaw before and I like it, but never had their meatloaf or mashed. Both were quite good!

I feel like I'm doing an outtake of "Life of Brian." Is it too OT to discuss ground meat products in general?? :)

So in that vein, I made ground turkey stroganoff last night using my late Mother's recipe for hamburger stroganoff, although I substituted an olive oil chicken stock velouté sauce for the can of condensed chicken soup, and used lite sour cream so added a healthy splash of white wine to up the flavor profile. It was just as good as hamburger stroganoff, IMHO which IMHO is sort of damning with faint praise, but my Dad will love it . . . Much less cost than the dearly priced lean ground beef. And yes, those are wide egg noodles which hubs found at the store. They are the "no yolks" kind which we both liked just as much if not better.

If I make it again for myself, it will be vegetarian with fake meat crumbles or French lentils, and some peas and sundried tomatoes to up the flavor. It was way too "mushroom-y" for my taste, even though I like mushrooms . . .

Glad you enjoyed, Mtn-- I wish we had a WF nearby (i think Devon is the closest?).. but TJs opens here next month so I am not going to complain.

Kswl - I'd like to try adding broth. It makes sense, i just never did it.

Pink - glad your family liked it. I don't consider an evolution of a discussion as OT... it is "conversational". I never had stroganoff-- a number of us in my family have issues with sour cream so it's just not something I ever had. Macaroni and Beef (similar to goulash) was a favorite growing up. It was basically ground beef, tomatoes, peppers, onions with macaroni. In my adult life when i want this kind of dish, it's usually turkey sausage, zucchini, onions, tomatoes and rigatoni.

Im with you, funky. I dislike meatloaf /bacon, but my tribe are bacon heathens.

Allison0704, I'm interested in the Hello Fresh meatloaf. What did you use for the fry seasoning?

Half and half ground beef/turkey with a hint of curry!

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/sweet-and-spicy-meatloaves-recipe-2119486

@lizbeth-gardener It's equal parts onion powder, garlic powder and paprika.

This website breaks down all their seasonings.

I like some meatloaf especially with bacon and non ketchupy globs but turkey? I much prefer the flavor of ground chicken and use that in lettuce wraps.

Thanks, Allison!

My daughter despises bacon and it's heartbreaking.

I winged a turkey meatloaf last night and it was good. It was just for hubs and I so I didn't have to worry about using ingredients or seasonings my dad wouldn't like. I followed my usual recipe which calls for seasoned bread crumbs (or oatmeal), an egg, and some tomato sauce and onion. Except I used home made mild salsa instead of the tomato sauce, and it had onions, peppers and tomato in it, plus seasonings of cumin, parsley, garlic and oregano. Also used Italian seasoned bread crumbs and a tsp. of Penzey's "Arizona Dreaming" which is a paprika-based seasoning sort of a cross between "Accent" and celery salt with a touch of cayenne. Also used a small amount of mozz cheese and Parmesan. Topped with tomato basil sauce. It was delish, but not low fat by any means, which I would say probably goes for all meat loafs. Would have to go to a turkey pilaf or turkey minestrone to get the flavors without the fats for binding and flavor . . . Otherwise a meatloaf is just a big seasoned burger . . . It did have the advantage of being much cheaper than hamburger-based meatloaf. Like some others have said, I think we'll be limiting our beef to the treat of steaks, kebabs or actual hamburgers or a roast. I made pork stew last week which was as good as beef stew and lots cheaper. I am trying to dial down meat anyway, as previously mentioned.

Glad your meatloaf was a success! I don't know that it is a high fat dish-- the turkey meatloaf I get from Wegmans is 100 calories, 3g of fat (only .5 of which is saturated fat) for a 3 oz serving. Even if you double the serving size the specs aren't bad.

The addition of cheese does add to the fat-- so i guess it depends how much you add. When i make my own, i do add parmesan-- but not much at all. In the scheme of things, I think turkey meatloaf is a good alternative to a lot of meat dishes-- and at 100 calories a serving, it was a great option for me when i wanted a "meal" without blowing the calories.

I have not tried any of these recipes yet-- not disinterest! I just wanted to get some steak in before my oral surgery (next week) and I needed to use up some stuff in the freezer. I'll make one in a few weeks when i am back on normal food.

I may try the Wegman's recipe next. I sort of wanted to go with something that I knew first, although usually when I make a Wegman's recipe it turns out good. Yes, there are worse meals . . . and I ate it in moderation along with a healthy side dish of roasted winter vegetables. My recipe is pretty similar to the Wegman's one with slightly different seasonings . . . and the cheese. I have a cheese problem, I love it so much!!

Since the ground turkey chain is continuing, i’ll toss in this recommendation by a friend whose taste in food i trust completely. she has made these turkey meatballs from Food52 more than once as well as the suggested acconpaniment of orzo with whole lemon vinaigrette. i saw the lemon-olive vinaigrette mid-production and it looked great.

the meatball recipe is a bit unusual w/ the inclusion of mayo but that is explained in the text.

https://food52.com/recipes/73534-tender-turkey-meatballs-and-orzo-with-whole-lemon-vinaigrette

Oooooh Lisa I want to make that!! I have the orzo. Sigh. I can just hear my husband skeptically saying "ORZO??!!" "What's THAT??!!"

Use macaroni instead— macaroni salad is an easy sell:)

Well I could. Hubs also doesn't like lemon. That really curbs my cooking. I love lemon.

Looked yesterday and apparently I used up the orzo, or else shoved it to the back somewhere I can't find . . . but I have cous cous and I think this would be good with cous cous.

I've tried to restrain myself in the pasta department, I love all the different shapes but I'm trying to save money and the more exotic shapes are more expensive. I love the little tiny butterfly pasta too, that would be cute in that salad above . . . I have some tiny shell macaroni but am saving that for mac n cheese someday.

Ground turkey was on sale and about the only meat we could afford yesterday at the store. Luckily we don't eat a lot of it and have some of the less expensive stuff still in the freezer. Will be a while before I can get to this dish, still have the meatloaf to eat up. Planning that for tonight's dinner . . .