Serve these delicious meatloaf muffins with steamed green beans and roasted potato wedges for an at-home version of a blue-plate special.

Diner Meat Loaf 'Muffins'

olive oil

onion

carrot

oregano

garlic cloves,

ketchup, divided

beef, extra lean (raw)

finely crushed fat-free saltine crackers (about 20)

mustard

Worcestershire sauce

black pepper

eggs

Cooking spray

Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion, chopped carrot, dried oregano, and minced garlic; sauté 2 minutes. Cool.


Combine onion mixture, 1/2 cup ketchup, and the remaining ingredients except cooking spray in a large bowl.


Spoon the meat mixture into 12 muffin cups coated with cooking spray. Top each with 2 teaspoons ketchup. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until a thermometer registers 160°. Let stand for 5 minutes.


I made these for my daughter at college. I made them just as the recipe said. They were made in large muffin tins, baked them, wrapped each one in foil then froze them in a large ziplock. When my daughter and her roommate wanted something to eat at college they just took them out and microwaved them.

I never understood why my husband was obsessed with meatloaf....until today. This recipe came out amazing! I used someone else's suggestion of using tomato sauce instead of ketchup because I don't like sweet and savory together and it came out really well. At the end I poured some beef gravy on the muffins and it came out divine!

Great basic recipe for a delicious mini meat loafs or muffin sized loafs. No need to change a thing. Delicious as written.

These were delicious and cute.  We don't like sweet meatloaf, so I adapted a previous reviewer's suggestion and used roasted garlic flavored tomato sauce with a couple squirts of sriracha in place of ketchup.  Used panko instead of saltines.  My spouse recommended I add a little more spices to the meat mixture next time, but we both liked it as prepared.

Is it "Dinner Meat Loaf Muffins" or is it "Dinner MEATLOAF Muffin"? Spelling check much?

This was the "Best Meatloaf Ever" (that is what my autistic son told me)! and it was!....I follow the recipe exactly...it was very easy to make...I haven't cleaned up yet so not sure about the clean up....make sure you use only lean meat...it makes for less oil and the meatloaf stand up much better (only saying that because my mother made one with regular ground beef a few months ago and it fell apart and not as tasty)

How much spinach did you use?  Did you saute it?

In place of beef I used lean turkey. I substituted quick oats for the crackers. I added chopped bell pepper.  I made 4 pounds with the ground turkey (makes 3-1/2 dozen) so we have leftovers for breakfast or lunch. Served with mashed potatoes and sautéed cabbage. Great comfort food.

 The flavors of this were very good. I did have a couple of additions - I added some shredded pepper jack cheese and also added some mustard , brown sugar and worchestershire to the ketchup for the topping.  I cooked them for about 20 min without the ketchup topping to allow for formation of a crust on top.  I have made mini meatloaves on a broiler pan before - which I prefer,  as it allows for a "crust on three side and the clean-up is easier. . 

I also substituted tomato sauce for the catsup in order to lower salt content. I used salt free tomato sauce.  I used low sodium panko crumbs instead of saltines.  It turned out great!

Followed the recipe but added my standard Chopped Spinach to the mix and used homemade french bread crumbs instead of crackers.  Great way to get kids to eat their spinach.  Will definitely make again.  Love the small muffin service size.

I make a meatloaf mix very similar to this and I always used ground turkey. I have used oatmeal but don't care for it in the meatloaf that well it seems heavy to me.

Added 1/4 cup bacon bits and 1/2 cup shredded extra sharp cheddar. Next time, I will double the bacon and cheese and probably skip the carrots. Also, in a 350 convection oven, they were done (190 internal temp) in 20 minutes. Very moist and easy to remove from pan. I set them onto a cooling rack over a cookie sheet so any excess fat could drip off. Delicious.

These are yummy but I mix ketchup, a little mustard and brown sugar mix for the topping!

I made this with 1 lb 93/7 ground beef, and 1/2 lb ground turkey breast, and it was very moist and flavorful. I reduced the ketchup on top by 1/4 cup, and used 1/4 cup egg whites and 1 whole egg. I also used unsalted top saltines. I would like to try this with just ground turkey or ground turkey breast, and maybe try the oatmeal sometime. Definitely a keeper!

Great recipe!  I added some shredded zucchini just because I always do for added veggie nutrition and moisture.  And for fun, I made them in a mini-bundt cake pan!  Because they come out upside down, I didn't put the ketchup on top before baking, but inverted the cooked "cakes" onto a baking sheet, then brushed them with ketchup and put them under the broiler for a few minutes to set it up.

I make these fairly regularly.  I do like to change the seasoning around a bit and increase the garlic and spice a little.  It would also be easy to incorporate other veggies such as mushrooms, peppers, or squash if you wanted to eschew the traditional 'meatloaf' taste.

Great recipe! Moist, slightly sweet, easy and good. I used homemade barbecue sauce instead of ketchup for a kick. Stuffed the end of summer peppers for winter meals and used the leftovers for meatball subs.

I made these for a big family dinner at my mom's house and was surprised how well received they were even from the picky eaters.  My teenage nephews ate 3 each and one of them even told his mom she should make them.  I substituted oatmeal for the saltines to make them gluten free.  Also shredded the carrots and added extra garlic.  If I was making for just myself &amp; my husband I would have added some spice like chipotle peppers or adobo sauce, but, for a crowd of picky eaters they went over well.

 Used ground bison in place of beef and matzo crackers instead of saltines. I also used the new Pampered Chef single serving pan instead of a muffin tin. Read full review at http://www.dishoverdinner.com/2013/03/how-i-really-cook-with-toddler-in.html 

One of my favorite Cooking Light recipes. I use ground 93/7 turkey, and I only use one egg...they still turn out moist!

I loved this recipe, it was very moist and flavorful. The fact they're single size is a plus too!

Comfort food!  When I use 96% lean ground beef, there is no fat in the muffin cups like when I used 93%.  Also, I substituted 8 oz can of tomato sauce for the ketchup.  Much less sweet.  Lastly, I substituted 1 cup quick oats for the saltines because that is what I had on hand.  Yummy!

I like this recipe and my husband prefers it even over "him Mom's". It is fun in the muffin size and taste delicious.

Like the automatic built-in portion control, but the recipe itself needs some work.  Not horrible, just not great.. there are better meatloaf recipes out there... and I'd bet they'd work in the muffin tins too.

Great and very easy to make. I am not a meat loaf lover by any means and I really liked these.  The only change I made was adding some sweet BBQ sauce to the tops instead of the ketchup. It really made them pop.

Wonderful, easy recipe and best of all my 7 year old loves them!!  An easy way to get veggies in him!  Sometimes we will substitute bbq sauce for ketchup.

Hi there,
I just tried it tonight and my hubby and I loved it. He ate four and I ate two. But It was a hit in our house. I didn't have the worchester sauce so i substituted with soy sauce lol and the prepared mustered for regular mustard. But it was still amazing. So its defiantly worth a try. :)

These turned out very tasty! I will make again and my 3yr old even ate them.....Will be added to the dinner list....Plus they were very quick and to the table in an hour! A bonus for working and cooking moms!

I love meatloaf!  The only problem is that it takes too long to cook on a busy week night, and this recipe solves that problem!  It makes a great meal quickly, and now I have leftovers too.  I'll definitely make this again.

Enjoyed this meatloaf recipe. I look and look for a good meatloaf recipe. I don't have to look anymore.

Great flavor, super easy to make but it had a really unpleasant mushy texture. Won't be making this again, especially after the tantrums from my 6 year old.

These were great and easy to make.  I will save the leftovers and put them in the freezer for a night when I don't feel like cooking.

This was quick and easy, used turkey rather than beef. Cheaper and less fat.  Had most ingredients on hand.  Everybody thought it was great.

I made these last night and they were delicious!  Super moist and very easy to make.  I used salsa instead of ketchup in the meat/vegetable mixture; but I did use ketchup on the top.  My family loved it and I will definitely make this again.

A HUGE hit with the whole family -- husband and kids loved them!  Accidentally added a whole cup of ketchup to the meat mixture and they were still great.  Very moist and flavorful.  Definitely making these again....

PHENOMENAL! We used lean turkey meat. My kids and husband loved this!

I have made these many times, and we love them. I add one envelope of Lipton onion soup but keep everything else the same. It works  best with leaner beef. Today I ground my own combination of brisket and chuck (following the Cooking light recipe for brisket burgers for grinding the meat) and my family said it was even better.

Delicious. I make this once every two weeks. Couple of suggestions:

For the last 5-10 minutes of baking them, crank up the heat to 400. It'll make them crispy on the edges mmm mmm.

For the ketchup topping- add 2 tbsp of brown sugar and a dash of Worcestershire sauce.

These are SO delicious!  I make them with 99% fat free turkey breast instead of beef and they are really good.  The great thing about the muffin tin is that each meat loaf is perfectly, evenly cooked.  My husband loves them!  I highly recommend them!

These were great.  Made these for our special Valentine's dinner.  I only had 1 lb burger and was afraid that would change the consistency and they wouldn't turn out.  They were still great.  Instead of placing into the muffin cups, I shaped them into hearts and baked them on a broiling pan. I searved with mashed red potatoes and grilled asparagus.  It was great.  The combination of the oregano, onions and carrots with the mustard and ketchup . . . a definite addition we will be adding to our recipe box.

These are delicious! Great flavor and so easy to make. Will definitely be making these again.  Served with mashed red potatoes and green beans.

By far, my favorite recipe from this site so far!  My muffin cups were a lot bigger than I'd realized so I ended up making 6 extra large muffins and just doubling the cooking time.  Came out great!  Moist and flavorful.  Just perfect.  I love how it looks and that they are automatically single servings, so you know exactly how many to have!  

A great base recipe as well.  Endless possibilities to mix it up.

I made this recipe exactly as written, except I used bottled chili sauce instead of ketchup to give it some extra zing. The muffins were moist and flavorful, and didn't fall apart at all when I scooped them out of the tin. I served the muffins with a vegetable rice dish, which was a nice complement. I'll definitely be making this recipe again.

Very quick and easy to make with very little to clean up. Had great flavor.

Switched out the beef for ground turkey....It was great...my whole family loved it...made mini muffins for my grandson and he ate 7 of them.

Good basic recipe and ridiculously easy to make.  I admit I used regular ground beef (80% fat) and that was a mistake: the grease just pooled inside the muffin cups.  I had to drain them, then bake on a rack to drain a little fat off.  Still, the flavor was good (could use more mustard and Worcestershire) and I'm eager to try again with ground turkey. I will also skip the muffin pan and make little mounds on a baking sheet instead because I love the crust that forms on the outside.

a favorite in our house.  I have 4 kids that inhale these each time I make them.  Best thing I make ahead and keep them in the fridge until ready to cook!

Very good recipe.  This was actually the first time I have ever made meatloaf, and I was surprised!  I love how moist it turned out.  And I absolutely LOVE the idea of individual "muffins" ... I froze my leftovers so I can have a quick meal in minutes.  I substituted quick oats for the saltines as some reviewers noted.  Couldn't even tell the difference.  Next time I think I'll try something other than ketchup as the topping, just to play with the flavors a bit.  Will definitely be making again.

I was bowled over by this recipe! I didn't have worseteshire but it certainly wasn't missed. It was easy, delicious and fun! I will definitely make it again. I bet it would be good for families. I served it with frozen green beans and simple roasted potatoes.

Well...I may just not be a meatloaf person.  Hubby - who does like meatloaf, told me it was good - but you could tell its a healthy meatloaf.  He enjoyed the texture - but not so much the taste.  The kids weren't digging it either.  Oh well - it was neat to try!

Great dish!  Meatloaf made easy -- and tasty.  This will definitely be part of our dinner rotation!

I live in North Africa and wanted to make meat loaf for some of the university students I teach here so they could have an American meal.  I chose this recipe because it was healthier and because I could get all the ingredients here.  The muffins turned out great.  It is the first time I have served food to North Africans that they have completely finished.  Not even any crumbs left.  Plus, I doubled the recipe and popped the extras in the freezer for later.

I used ground turkey and Italian breadcrumbs and it turned out great.  I also didn't have a muffin pan so I just made twelve meatloaf balls on a cookie sheet and they were still delicious!

I prepped this the night before and then popped them in the oven when I got home from work - worked out well.  Very moist.  My 6 year old asked for seconds and then asked if he could also take one to lunch so it was a hit.  My husband said they were fine but preferred my other meatloaf recipe.  I will probably make again since they were so easy to pop in.

i made these mini meatloaf muffins for sunday dinner, i was iffy about the saltine crackers...but i did this to what the recipe said and when they were done...it was mosit and super yummy! i could not even taste they had carots in there i used fresh chopped oregano instead of the dried...i will be making this again!

I used 4% lean ground beef and they were not dry at all.  My family said they tasted like they were ordered from a restaurant. I would definitely make it again.  I served it with mashed potatoes and mixed peas and carrots. Yum!

Thought this was great!  My picky 3-year old ate it and the hubby liked it too.  I love the individual portions for freezing.  Like others I substituted quick oats for crackers.  This is going into the rotation.

These were good but nothing special, &amp; certainly not something I'd serve guests.  I used 3/4 of everything, but just one egg, a tad more panko, and a tad less catchup on top.  I thought the carrots made them too sweet, esp. with all the ketchup.  I made 6 in a large muffin pan (6/pan).  And cooked for about 35 minutes.  Served with sweet potato and sauteed mushrooms and spinach.  I like Epicurious' Buffalo Meatloaf with Cremini Mushrooms far better (use xlean beef if you like.)

This is my favorite meatloaf recipe.  The muffin idea is genius and even my non-meatloaf-fan fiance loves the meatloaf.  So moist, and much more convenient to reheat as muffins rather than a whole pan.  I love it with plain white rice and a lot of ketchup with a dash of hot sauce :)

I've made this recipe twice as written.  It's a good meatloaf recipe, but a little plain.  I've decided I probably won't make again because I've had better meatloaf.  I do, however, love the muffin tin idea.  It's a fun way to serve to children or if you have people in your family that always want the crusty edges of the loaf.

Super easy. Carrots actually add more flavor than you would expect. Two 'muffins' are a good serving size.

I don't really care for meatloaf, but I thought this tasted good.  My husband, who loves meatloaf, really likes this, so win-win!  I like that you can make it ahead, freeze it, share it (I give half the recipe to my mother-in-law). I always have some in my freezer.  I wait for the meat to go on sale. Sometimes I make 18 instead of 12

Easy, Fast, Delicious. The small pieces are SO cute and much more appealing than standard meatloaf.  This is great for everyday OR special occ.  Made some changes the 2nd time around but the orig. is perfect.  I added 2 tbsp of mustard, 1 package of dry. veggie soup mix and used stuffing mix instead of Saltines.  YUMMIE!

My kids actually ate meatloaf!!!!!!!!!!!! Yes! We will make this again

This was a great, simple recipe.  I served with mashed potatoes, corn and biscuits.  I did mix a little brown sugar with the ketchup to top the muffins, gave it a hint of sweetness and was great! Other than that modification, I followed the recipe exactly. Will make again!

These were a hit! I served it with rosemary roasted potatoes and green beans with almond slivers. My favorite meatloaf recipe to date!

I love these meatloaf "muffins" They turned out great!

These were really good. I loved that they cook so much quicker than a meatloaf. Also, they
were easier to share and store as leftovers!  The flavor was good and these were moist. I
did not have carrots so I left those out. I did add some parmesan cheese since a friend of
mine claims, it's the secret ingredient to any good meatloaf. :) This is my first real
attempt at meatloaf and I will make these again. My bf, who is a meatloaf guy, loved these.

This is a great recipe we make about 1-2 times per month.  I use ground turkey and substitute 1-C Quick Oats in place of the saltines (adds fiber and reduces sodium).  I grate the carrots fine in a box grater.  We have mini loaf pans that I use instead of the muffin pans.  we always serve with mashed potatoes / gravy and corn.

We really enjoyed this!  I used ground venison and made it as a regular meatloaf instead of minis.  Turned out moist and flavorful!

I was looking for the perfect recipe for good warm comfort food and this was it!  I actually made them into mini meatloaves on a cookie sheet because I couldn't find my muffin tin, and it worked just as well.  I didn't make any modifications except for that, and it was just sooo good.  I would make this often - it was delicious and easy and cooked more quickly than normal meatloaf because of the size.

I made this recipe tonight for my Nephew that is visiting. We both loved it. He asked me to share it with my sister. I highly recommend the recipe and will make it again and again.

Sooo good!!  Wonderful dish!  I used Italian bread crumbs instead of the crackers.  I also added sauted bell peppers to the mix, and left the ketchup off the TOP of the muffins.  Before serving I added a chunky tomato sauce.  Also, great to freeze!  Will make again.

Great recipe that bakes up quickly.  My carrots were a little hard, but I now know to cook them a little longer.  Since I'm using the food processor out to crush up the crackers, I might even process the carrots next time.  Smaller pieces would cook up quicker!  This goes in the regular recipe rotation.

My husband and I LOVED this dish. Great for anytime, anybody - leftovers freeze well. I followed the recipe exactly with exception of adding a bit more ketchup to the tops of the mini's only because I've always liked more ketchup on top of meatloaf. We served it with the Easy Corn Casserole. Will make again, and again, and again....

This is a great recipe.  It was quick, easy and tasty!  I liked to portion control aspect of the recipe.  I am going to keep these in mind for the next shower or party, I think they would be a hit!

We love this recipe... it is so easy and very tasty. My on;y suggestion is to wait to put the ketchup up until about 15 minutes before it is finished cooking. All of the meats fat sort of works its way up and needs to be drained off, then put the ketchup on and put it back in the oven for a little bit.

The secret to getting the kids to eat their dinner? Your muffin tin! These little meat loaf muffins are too cute not to love.

diner meat loaf 'muffins'

Servings: 4

Author : David Bonom

Ingredients

Instructions

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