Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf

Ingredients

Brown Sugar Ketchup Glaze:

1/4 C. ketchup

1/4 C. Chili Sauce

4 TBSP. brown sugar (light or dark)

Meatloaf:

2 tsp. vegetable oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 large eggs

1 tsp. dried thyme

1 tbsp. kosher salt

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

2 tsp. Dijon mustard

2 tsp. Worchestershire sauce

1/4 tsp. hot red pepper sauce

1/2 C. milk, buttermilk or low-fat plain yogurt

2 lbs. meatloaf mix

2/3 C. crushed saltine crackers (about 16)

1/3 C. minced parsley (or Cilantro)

6 oz thin sliced bacon

Glaze

Directions

Brown Sugar Glaze: 1) Mix all ingredients in a small bowl; set aside.

Meatloaf: 1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat oil in a medium skillet. Add onion & garlic, saute until softened, about 5 minutes; set aside to cool.

2) Mix eggs with thyme, salt, pepper, mustard, Worchestershire sauce, pepper sauce, & milk or yogurt. Add egg mixture to meat in a large bowl, along with crackers, oatmeal or bread crumbs, parsley (or cilantro) & cooked onions & garlic; mix with a fork until evenly blended & meat mixture doesn't stick to bowl. (If mixture does stick , add additional milk, a couple tbsp. at a time, & continue stirring until mixture stops sticking).

3) Turn meat mixture onto a work surface . With wet hands, pat mixture into a loaf approximately 9 x5 in.

4) Cover a wire rack with foil ; prick  foil in several places with a fork. Place a rack on a shallow roasting pan lined with foil for easy cleanup.

5) Set formed loaf on rack. Brush loaf with half of the glaze, then arrange bacon slices, crosswise, over loaf, overlapping them slightly & tucking them under to prevent curling. Place the 2nd half of the glaze in a small pot on the stove & heat over low heat until ready to serve.

6) Bake loaf until bacon is crisp & loaf registers 160 degrees; about 1 hour. Cool for at least 20 minutes. Slice & serve.

Prep: 20 minutes

Cook: 1 hour 5 minutes

Cool: 20 minutes

Serves: 6

With this you may have to raise the oven temp if you find it not cooking as fast and leave it in a little longer than the hour. If you don't have the parsley you can substitute Cilantro for it and it works just the same..This was definitely really good.