Italian Meatloaf
This Italian Meatloaf is loaded with zucchini and marina sauce is so easy and flavorful. You’ll love it for a hearty dinner!
Meatloaf, meatloaf, meatloaf. It’s one of those dinners I used to eat all the time as a kid. In fact, I ate it so much as a kid, that I swore I would never make it as an adult. Well…I guess I lied to myself. I do in fact make meatloaf and I really like it.
When I was younger I used to watch my mom throw all these ingredients into a big bowl, mix in the ground beef, then slap it on the pan. Bake for an hour and that was it. We always had to add ketchup on the side because it would taste just blah.
When I first played around with this meatloaf recipe, I’m not gonna lie it was yuckie. It was just another big slab of ground beef. Who wants to eat that? No me. Then I went to google and read all sorts of other recipes and got inspired. I knew I needed to add some umph to this recipe.
That’s where the zucchini and sauce come in. I swear you guys just adding a little spaghetti sauce, zucchini and of course cheese, takes this meatloaf to a whole to level. This is by far my favorite meatloaf recipe, plus it’s super easy to whip up on a busy night. Now it does take about 35-45 minutes to cook, but the prep time is literally no more than 5-10 minutes.
Throw the pan in the oven, grab that glass of wine and watch something on tv for 30 minutes. It’s fool proof and I promise you guys will love it. I’ve made this recipe with ground turkey or ground beef. Either way it turns out delicious! When Sean and I are on a healthy kick, we do turkey, but I gotta say that I love the flavor the beef gives this dish too. Whichever way is fine as long as you make it.
THIS POST FIRST APPEARED OVER AT WEARY CHEF WHERE I’M A CONTRIBUTOR! HEAD OVER TO SEE WHAT ANDI’S COOKIN UP!
Get the Recipe: Italian Meatloaf
Ingredients
- 1 package Stove Top Stuffing mix for Chicken
- 1 jar, 24 ounces spaghetti sauce, divided
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, divided
- 2 tablespoon Italian parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 pound ground beef
- 2 cups zucchini, chopped
- 3/4 cups Mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- In a large bowl, add stuffing mix with half of the spaghetti sauce, garlic, ½ teaspoon oregano, parsley and pepper; mix well. Add meat and mix to incorporate all ingredients (I usually use my hand to make sure everything is incorporated).
- Place meat in a 9x13 baking dish.
- Add zucchini, remaining spaghetti sauce, ½ teaspoon oregano to a bowl and mix to combine. Spoon over meat mixture and cover with foil.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes. Remove foil and top with cheese. Bake for another 10 minutes uncovered. Meatloaf should be 160 degrees F with cheese bubbly and melted.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
I ate a TON of meatloaf when I was younger, too! My dad got into a meatloaf kick and used to make it once a week for a period of time. Needless to say, I can go a while without meatloaf. But, every now and then, I find a new recipe that sucks me in. This Italian version looks SO good, Cyndi! I love the flavors, especially with the cheese!
I hear you on the meatloaf from our childhood…not the greatest (which is so surprising because my mom is such a great cook!!) I love your updated version, Cyndi! Looks delicious!
This meatloaf looks SO good, Cyndi! I want a slice for dinner 🙂 my mom’s meatloaf was never great as a kid either, haha. Yours is WAY better!
The meatloaf from your childhood sounds about like what I remember! But it can be really good when you add stuff to it and change it up. This Italian version looks so delicious, Cyndi! Definitely need to try it!
We had meat loaf a fair amount growing up, too, and I always loved it! I don’t make it much now but obviously I need to change that — my kids would love this!
I love this recipe so much, Cyndi. I need to figure out a GF substitute for the stuffing mix so I can try it!!
Thanks Andi! How about using GF bread then adding in some spices for flavoring. I bet that would work out? Let me know if you try it out. 🙂
Aldi grocery stores sell gluten free stuffing mix…it is awesome
Yum! And pinned!Thanks!