Italian mozzarella stuffed mini "meatloaves"

                                                                        
If you don't like cheese, this is not the recipe for you.  If you don't like meatloaf, this IS the recipe for you!

I realize meatloaf is in the title, but this is the antimeatloaf meatloaf.  It doesn't have vinegary ketchup, which my hubby hates, and it is anything but dry.  Instead, it is an Italian version with spaghetti sauce in place of the ketchup.  Rosemary, Italian seasoned bread crumbs, garlic and parmesan cheese mix in with the meat--ground turkey and reduced fat sausage.  Best of all, though, is the pocket of mozzarella hiding in every individual serving.  Yes, gooey, hot, stringy mozzarella is melted into the center pocket of every mini serving.

If that wasn't enough cheese for you, it is topped with spaghetti sauce and shredded mozzarella until it is brown and bubbly.  Delish.

Here are the ingredients

First mix the binding ingredients before you add any of the meat.

Add your ground turkey and reduced fat sausage.  Not pretty, I know.  Hang in there, though.  There's payoff for your patience.

I used a muffin tin for the first time to get prettier loaves.  You can use any shape.

Make a little bowl and press down half of the meat in each muffin holder.

Now comes the ooey and gooey part--add your sticks of mozzarella.  I know--it looks like butter.  Trust me, it's cheese.

Now cover it all with the caps of your meatloaf

Bake at 350 for 35 minutes.  Look at that cheesy deliciousness oozing out to say hello. 

I took my loaves out and put them on a cookie sheet to top with the spaghetti sauce and mozzarella.  Bake about 5 minutes more.  I realized later I could have just put the muffin tin ON a cookie sheet to catch any runoff or drips.  You learn as you go . . .

Ummm . . . the best meatloaf EVER!  In fact, it shouldn't be called meatloaf.  That doesn't give it the credit it deserves.  Enjoy--your family is going to love you!  Even my picky 4 year old ate it up--that is success!

Italian mozzarella stuffed mini "meatloaves"

1 beaten egg

1 cup Italian style bread crumbs

1/2 cup spaghetti sauce

2 cloves garlic

1 teaspoon dried, crushed rosemary

1 lb. ground turkey

8 ounces reduced fat ground sausage

6 sticks of mozzarella chopped up for the middle section of each loaf--1 stick per loaf

spaghetti sauce for tops

shredded mozzarella or provolone cheese for tops

Combine egg, bread crumbs, 1/2 cup of spaghetti sauce, garlic and rosemary in a bowl.

Add meat mixture and mix well.

Divide meat mixture into 6 equal servings OR about 7 if you use a muffin tin.

Press half the mixture for each mini loaf down, leave an indent where you put the cheese sticks, and then cover the rest of the mini loaf with meat--essentially a large meatball with a bunch of cheese in the center.

Bake uncovered at 350 for 35 minutes.

Cover cooked meat with spaghetti sauce and shredded cheese.  Bake 5 minutes more or until the meat thermometer reads about 160.

Trip to Italy

All this talk of Italian made me think of my trip to Italy.  Before our kids were born, my husband and I traveled a lot--Italy, Ireland, England, Switzerland, Greece, Germany, Austria, Hawaii, Costa Rica, and some other places.  I cherish every second we were able to do that.  In 2004, we traveled around Italy for a couple of weeks--I felt at home with my Italian name (Chiara is pronounced Key-r-uh).  Here are a few pics to make you feel that Italian vibe before you cook this Italian inspired recipe.

Rome.  There is St. Peter's Cathedral behind us.

The Colisseum

Pisa.  We literally hopped off the bus, took a couple pictures and headed out of town.

Lake Como

Venice

I linked this post to:

Cough, Cough

Well, the lesson here, boys and girls, is don't take a deep chest cough lightly. I waited 3 weeks to go to the doctor about my cough and now I am timing the taking of antibiotics, an inhaler, and steroids. The cough is already better after 24 hours on antibiotics, but the doctor was none to pleased with me waiting so long to see her. I did sound pretty bad.

So, I've been under the weather and a little less energetic for crafts. My sweet family made me this sign on my bathroom mirror.  I did look a bit like the green-faced circle yesterday.

I did manage to quickly sew a valentine scarf for Carter's friend.  She is turning 5 and loves to dress up.  I cut out felt hearts and quickly hand stitched them together with clear thread.  She can wear her scarf around Valentine's Day.  I hope to make her a fabric headband with twisted fabric flowers too.

Tonight I am making my yummalicious Italian meatloaf.  I know--meatloaf.  Blech.  This is seriously different.  It has Italian sausage and seasonings, all the while hiding a big chunk of mozzarella cheese nesting in the middle of each individual loaf.  When it is golden brown and baked, you cover it in spaghetti sauce and sprinkle more mozzarella on top.  How delicious is that?!  I'll post a tutorial on the meatloaf (I need a new name so people actually try it) tomorrow.

Cough.  Cough.  I'm off to try a short nap while both boys are sleeping.  Zzzzzzz. . .

53 Weekly Themes: Photo 365 Project: Week 1 "Newness"

There is no doubt in anyone's mind that I am not a professional photographer.  I've never had a class.  Shutter speed--what is that?  Seriously.  I'm lost.  Like a toddler trying to get into mommy's makeup drawer, I'm fascinated by this artsy subject that is way over my head.  Still, God made me creative, and I like that creative part of photography.

SO, I found out about this fun photography project from a friend on Facebook.  It is a blog that challenges you to take a picture every day.  To help, the post gives you 53 weekly themes to motivate your picture ideas.  You can see the post and the themes here.

I KNOW I won't take a picture every day, but I thought it would be doable to take a photo a week that follows the theme of the week.  Then, I'll post it on my blog.  It won't be photographic genius.  It won't be in any art shows, but it will be fun and creative.

This would be a fun linky post for people who want to post their photo, but I just joined the crafting blogging world a month ago.  I don't think I'm ready to host a linky post party.  Maybe in the near future. . .

So, start this fun project with me!  The first theme is already ending--we are a week into January.  The theme for the first week is "newness".  : ) 

I put my "newness" pictures at the top of this post--First, I took a picture of my blogsite on my laptop.  I am new to having a craft blog, and I enjoy it immensely!  I love the inspiration I get from my readers and from others' blogs.  It is a newness I am greatly enjoying.

I also posted a picture of my 1 year old's new smile for the camera.  Until this picture, he usually just stared agape at the camera or actually looked away with indifference.  He has realized mommy loves when he poses with a smile, so he has created this beautifully, goofy smile when I aim the camera at him.  I love this new look!

Finally, I posted a picture of Genesis 1:1 for several reasons.  For several years now, I have read through the Bible in a year.  If you are interested in a Bible reading schedule done for you, you can find both the schedule and passages at Compass Bible Church's Daily Bible Reading.  Use the arrows/calendar to get to the day on which you are reading.  It is a new year, and I am back in Genesis, which is the book of the Bible that tells us about the newness of the earth that God is creating.  I liked the fact that the sun was hitting the page and the presence of shadow and light were so perfect for the passage in the Bible where God is creating light out of darkness.

Alright, I will see you with a similar photography post next week with a photo or photos on the theme "cold".

Winter Cupcakes

"The only other sounds the sweep of easy wind and downy flake". . . Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening  by Robert Frost

Every 6 weeks, our small group has a turn at bringing dessert to our marriage ministry. 
I thought about bringing the stale Christmas cookies sitting on our counter that, though stale, I still manage to crave during a sugar low.  That thought lasted about 10 seconds.  A good place for those cookies is the trash.

Instead, I found my snowflake pattern molds I bought in November and hadn't used.  I decided to make some snowy, winter themed cupcakes. 
I melted chocolates in white and blue into my snowflake molds and bought some cheery polka dotted blue and white cupcake holders.
I am quite talented at cutting corners and caring more about the overall impact than the details, so I made boxed cake mix cupcakes.  I am not a chocolate craver, so I made butter cake.  I alternated on frosting color to showcase the white and blue chocolate snowflakes.  Nonpareils snowed down on the chocolate frosting for a sweet and snowy presentation. 
There is no magic recipe here--just fun creating a theme and presentation.  Enjoy!

I linked this to:

http://calicoandcupcakes.blogspot.com/2011/01/winter-cupcakes.html