Turkey Meatloaf

With Grated Zucchini & Green Olives

Servings: 4-6 | Prep Time: 10 mins | Cook Time: 50 mins

How to make savory Italian-inspired turkey meatloaf textured with zucchini, green olives, and pepperoncini peppers. Do a twist on the classic meatloaf. We add a ready-made parmesan tomato sauce into the loaf and as a topping to continue the Italian flavors. The result is a healthier, lower-fat loaf that incorporates veggies. So good, even your usual non-veggie eaters will ask for seconds.

To continue the healthy theme for this meatloaf, we use whole wheat bread crumbs (an excellent source of dietary fiber), which is surprisingly hard to find at some grocery stores. In our search, we found a great product from Whole Foods in their signature 365™ Everyday Value brand. It contains 3 grams of dietary fiber per 1/4 cup serving size, a commendable amount. But if you're unable to find it, you can certainly use enriched regular plain bread crumbs instead.

Whole Foods 365™ Everyday Value whole wheat bread crumbs. Ingredients: Enriched whole wheat flour (whole wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), sugar, dried yeast. (Net Wt. 15 oz)

• 1 1/2 lbs ground turkey
• 2 pepperoncini peppers, sliced
• 1/4 cup green olives, chopped
• 1 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
• 1 zucchini, coarsely grated (~1 cup)
• 1/2 cup yellow onion, diced
• 1 stalk celery, diced
• 1 TBSP garlic, minced
• 1/8 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 tsp black pepper, fresh cracked
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano, crushed
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 cup milk, whole
• 1/4 cup pasta sauce, parmesan tomato herb

Topping
• 1/2 cup pasta sauce, parmesan tomato herb
• 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, coarsely grated

Adjust oven rack to lower middle position. Preheat oven to 325° F.
In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients for the loaf, excluding topping ingredients. Mix quickly just to combine. Don't overwork the mixture or you'll get a compact loaf.
Loosely form the mixture into a loaf and lightly press into a 9x5 loaf pan. Top with parmesan tomato herb pasta sauce and spread evenly over surface. Bake for 40 mins at 325° F.
Remove from oven. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top, then return to oven and bake another 10 mins.
Remove from oven. Serve turkey meatloaf hot. Goes great with garlic mashed potatoes, portobello mushrooms, and peas-and-carrots. Enjoy!