Mini Meatloafs (Meatloaves?)

The very word "Meatloaf" could bring my sister A to tears growing up, she just hated it that much!  But not me, I love it!  I think it is a great wintertime comfort food and I wanted to make it for my family tonight.  It has been a long time since I have made it for the kiddos and I didn't want them to hate it like A does, so I brainstormed a way to give them kid-appeal and this is what I came up with...

I got this pan from Z for Christmas and have been dying to try it out, but haven't known what to make with it yet, until now...

I made my meatloaf base, divided it into 12 equal portions and smooshed them down into my pan.  If you don't have a rockin' awesome square pan like me, I bet that you could use a cupcake pan, or if you want to be more traditional, you can pat the whole loaf down into a bread pan.

Next, I put 1 tbsp of my sauce mix on each portion of meatloaf and spread it around with the back of the spoon and then bake at 350 for one hour!  And be sure to serve with some hot mashed potatoes.

The mini-loaves made the perfect portion size for the kids and I liked having them smaller because it gave them a better sauce to meat ratio.  My biggest surprise was how much Charli loved them!  She is only 11 months and she ate two mini-meatloaves all by herself.

Mom's Meatloaf

Base:

1 lb ground beef

1/4 cup diced onions

1/4 cup milk

1 egg, beaten

3/4 cup soft bread crumbs (I buy my bread crumbs in a can at the store, but you could also grind up some stuffing mix, or dry out your own bread crumbs earlier in the day.)

1 tsp pepper

Sauce:

1/4 cup ketchup

3 tbsp brown sugar

1 1/2 tbsp mustard

Mix all ingredients for base together with your hands.  This is a really fun project for the kids because the texture is so gooey and slimy, they love mixing it.  (Just make sure they wash their hands before and after they are done.)

In a cupcake (or square cupcake pan, if you're awesome), portion your meatloaf into twelve equal portions.  Smash down with your hand.  You can also pat the whole base mixture into a regular bread loaf pan.  Top with 1 tbsp of sauce mixture and spread sauce with the back of the spoon.  Bake at 350 for 30-40 min.  (I baked mine for 45 min. and it was a little too much and they got crisp on the bottom.  Next time, I think I will check them after 30 min.) 
*If you bake it in an actual loaf, you will need to bake for one hour!