This recipe makes two meatloafs. If desired, one cooked loaf can be frozen and then reheated later. When cooking the frozen meatloaf, place it in the refrigerator the day before and allow it to thaw out for a day in the fridge before cooking.
1) Chop up some bacon into small bits. I use Oscar Meyer thick, center cut bacon - the whole package. Start frying it in a skillet. When it's about half cooked, add:
>>> one chopped onion and
>>> one chopped green bell pepper.
Continue cooking until the ingredients are most of the way cooked. Transfer to a big mixing bowl and allow it to cool off a little.
2) Add to the mixture:
>>> 3 slices white bread, crust removed - tear the bread into small pieces.
>>> salt and pepper as desired
>>> 1/2 cup BBQ sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray's)
>>> 2 pounds lean ground beef
>>> 2 eggs
3) Mash the ingredients together thoroughly for several minutes, until it becomes dough-like. This can be done with a wooden spoon and/or your hands.
4) Divide the meat mixture into two aluminum "2 pound" loaf pans. Pat the meat down firmly into the pan and smooth out the top. Place the two loaves side by side in a 9x13 cake pan.
5) Bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour. Turn the pan around halfway through, to help get more even cooking in the loaves.
6) Remove the loaves from the oven and put the oven on broil. Drain out the extra fat from the loaves. Then put BBQ glaze across both loaves. Here is the recipe for the glaze:
>>> 1/2 cup Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce
>>> 1/2 cup ketchup
>>> 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
>>> dash of black pepper
>>> 2 tablespoons soy sauce
>>> dash of tabasco sauce
7) Place the loaves back in the oven under the broiler. Keep an eye on it. Remove the meatloaf once the glaze gets all bubbly.
8) Serve with mashed potatoes and gravy, a vegetable side, salad, rolls, and a warm smile!
