When I was a kid I used to hate meatloaf. My mom would try preparing it different ways, or serving it with ketchup, or putting it in a bun like a hamburger, but I just had it in my head that I didn’t like it and nothing could convince me otherwise. I was a pretty stubborn kid, a trait that Cole seems to have inherited from me. He also thinks meatloaf is yucky even though I try to make it more exciting, like making it in muffin form and adding interesting flavours to it, such as these ones with Greek flavours. Unfortunately, like his mother, he still wouldn’t eat it. I still have hope that he will one day like meatloaf, because I actually enjoy it a lot now. Somewhere along the path to adulthood I warmed to meatloaf, as I did to other foods I hated as a child, like macaroni and cheese. Now I can’t get enough of macaroni and cheese. Foods like meat loaf and mac & cheese are now my comfort foods, perhaps because they’re such a familiar part of my childhood, even if I didn’t like them very much at the time. I wonder what Cole will think of the foods he hates now when he matures into a man and leaves home. Will he miss the meals he once disliked and begin to seek them out because of the sense of nostalgia they hold? I like to think that he would.
Well, enough musings from me. Let’s talk about this meatloaf. I’ve started baking all my meatloaf in muffin tins, because it cuts down on the cooking time. Plus, it’s just more fun to eat meatloaf in mini form. I love these particular ones because of the feta cheese on top and the hint of lemon, garlic and oregano that give them such a wonderful Greek taste. The food processor is a great tool for dicing up the ingredients very finely so they’re dispersed evenly in the meat. If you have fresh oregano that would be even better to add with the parsley instead of dried oregano. I have some fresh oregano growing in a pot on my patio right now, so I can’t wait to give it a try. You can do a lot of fun flavour combinations in meatloaf, which is part of why I like it. What are some of your favourite ingredients to add to meatloaf?

Greek Meatloaf in Muffin Tins
1 slice of whole wheat bread
1/2 cup parsley
1/2 of an onion
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp lemon zest
1 egg
0.5 kg extra lean ground beef

2-3 tbsp feta cheese

Place the slice of bread in a food processor and blend until it turns to crumbs. Pour the crumbs in a large bowl. Place parsley, onion, and garlic in the food processor and blend until ingredients are fully diced and combined. Add them to the bowl of bread crumbs. Add salt, pepper, oregano, lemon zest, egg and ground beef. Mix well until combined. Scoop meat mixture into a greased 6-cup muffin tin. Sprinkle with crumbled feta cheese. Bake at 400F for 30 minutes or until meat has cooked through.