Big Family Meatloaf

Total Time: 1 hr 35 mins Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 1 hr 20 mins

Ingredients

• 2 lbs ground beef
• 1 1/2 cups crushed saltines (1 row plus 8 crackers)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon emeril's original essence, original
• 1 1/2 teaspoons beef bouillon powder
• 1/3 teaspoon black pepper
• 2/3 cup tomato sauce (or use tomato paste cut in half with water)
• 1 large sweet onion (vidalia, walla walla, or texas sweet)
• 1/2-3/4 teaspoon canned garlic (from jar)
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 1/3 tablespoons prepared mustard
• 1 1/3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

Recipe

• 1 preheat oven to 325.
• 2 in a very large bowl put hamburger, crackers crumbled,salt, essence, boullion powder, and black pepper - set aside.
• 3 cut onion into larger pieces and put it in the food processor with the garlic -- pulse until pieces are small. dump onion mixture into the bowl with the meat.
• 4 beat the three eggs (in the food processor if you don't want to dirty a bowl) and add them to the meat bowl.
• 5 add the tomato sauce to the meat bowl and use your hands to mix all very well (i like to wear rubber gloves to save on clean-up time).
• 6 divide meat mixture in half. form into two loaves on the botton of your broiler pan or a roasting pan. leave room between loaves for even baking.
• 7 in smaller bowl mix together with a fork; ketchup, brown sugar, water, mustard and cider vinegar. this is your topping -- brush tops and sides of loaves with this before baking and again while baking.
• 8 bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes to 1 hour and 25 minutes.
• 9 when i remove the pan from the oven i like to pour off the excess oil in the bottom of the pan. let cool for about 5 minutes before serving. slice thick and pieces should hold together well.