Comfort food- Meatloaf and homemade mashed potatoes (gfcf)

I am always looking for ways to make yummy Gluten free recipes that our entire family can enjoy.
Liam is the only true blue GFCFSF guy but Sam and Daisy are pretty much almost there and jason and I are gfcfsf "light" just by default. My goal is always to make meals that we will alllll eat, instead of having to make 2 or 3 or even four meals because that gets annoying real quick (true story). :)

I came across a Gluten free recipe data base recently that i had sort of passed over before....and in it i found a ton of really awesome gfcf recipes!

Meatloaf is one of those tricky foods that is either delicious or its just turns out bleh. No in between really.
I had yet to find a meatloaf recipe that was both great tasting and GFCFSF.
A few things i have figured out with meatloaf: Dont make it too fancy. A TON OF INGREDIENTS DOES NOT EQUAL A GOOD LOAF. Keep it simple.
Its meat. Its a loaf.
Also, i have tried making it with different types of ground meats. Ground beef with a little ground pork seems to be the only way it turns out edible. Or just ground beef.  Ground chicken? Gag. Ground turkey? Bleh. No bueno.

Since we dont eat much beef or pork 'round these parts, this meal is like a little treat.
Buy organic and hormone free meat if you can. Free range. Hand fed. Deep tissue massaged. Facials and mud baths. Sung lullabies to sleep. All that. (lol)

I chose Meatloaf #2 .
I made my homemade mashed potatoes (gfcf version) to go with, and side of mixed veggies (from frozen, cooked on stove with some olive oil, salt and pepper).

Here is the recipe with my variations (you know how i roll)

2 lbs ground hamburger and ground pork, (I did 1lb of each)
3 eggs
1/2 cup ketchup (high fructose corn syrup free, preferably. We use Heinz/Simply Heinz.)
1 medium onion finely chopped (I mince mine super fine)
1/2 green bell pepper chopped (^same and i actually used zucchini because i had 3 and needed to use them)
1/2 cup GF bread crumbs (All i had in the moment, was some Rudi's Gluten Free sandwich bread in the freezer. I toasted it lightly and then put it through the food processor. Voia! Instant gfcfsf bread crumbs. You can buy some premade though, if you so like.)
2 teaspoon Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce (I did not have any gfcf worschester sauce so i omitted this. You would be surprised at whats in your "normal" store bought marinades and sauces. Almost ALL contain soy, and wheat! Why? I don know.)
Salt and pepper
Garlic powder ( I was actually out of garlic powder so i used a couple of cloves of fresh garlic minced finely)
6 slices bacon (Although I had some Applegate Bacon in the freezer, i chose to omit it simply because i dont like defrosting my meats in the microwave. gross. next time though i will be sure to include the bacon. i mean, who doesn't like bacon?)
Another 1/4 cup ketchup

Mix meat, eggs, ketchup, onion, pepper, bread crumbs, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, salt and pepper by hand. Place it in a pan (preferably on a rack so the grease will drain down) and shape it like a loaf.

(I greased a regular loaf pan and molded it in there, then turned the pan over and worked the meat out on to a rack which i placed on top of a lined cookie sheet) Spread more ketchup on top and lay bacon slices across covering the top. Bake at 375 degrees for an hour or until done.

This is how mine turned out (keep in mind i did not use the bacon):

I went ahead and helped myself to a little slice if you cant tell.....

Not too shabby, eh? :)

It actually turned out reallllly good. I can say this with certainty because:

1. The kids ate it

2. The husband ate it, AND asked for seconds.

Boom. 

Ok, now on to my favorite part of this meal, the mashed potatoes. Oh yeah.

Some people have a sweet tooth.
I have a mashed potato tooth.
Actually, I am a lover of all things potato.
Breakfast, lunch and dinner, if there is a potato involved, all the better.
Carb free diet? Not for this girl.

I have never really followed a set recipe for my mashed potatoes, i have always just sort of mashed and mixed everything together until it tasted just right. This time however, I made it GFCF. And it was delish!
Seriously...#coconutbutterforpresident #coconutoilforpresident.

6-8 yellow gold potatoes (that's what i had lying around, by all means use whatyagot. Russets are just as acceptable) peeled and quartered then cooked to tender in some salty water ( always add your potatoes to cold water and heat to boiling from there. Otherwise you get soggy potatoes and they can cook unevenly too.)
Once they are nice and tender (you dont want them over cooked because they can get sticky once mashed) throw them in to a big mixing bowl.
Add:
1/2 cup to 1 cup Earths Best Coconut Butter (Feel free to go all, Paula Deen up in this piece if you so desire!)
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup (more or less depending how creamy you like them) unsweetened almond or coconut milk (not the vanilla flavored stuff!!)
salt and pepper to taste (potatoes take a lot of salt but take care not to over salt, its always best to have it a little bland than too salty. You can always add salt to individual portions later)
Sugar- yes sugar, DO IT. It gives the MP's a yummy flavor TRUST ME. (about  1/4 cup) add it slowly and taste as you mix.
Always taste as you cook/mix. (Unless its chicken. Please dont try taste testing chicken until its fully cooked. I dont know why felt the need to clarify that but i can only imagine....lol)
Mix and mash until its to a consitency you like. I like mine nice and whipped...Jason like some chunks of potato.....we meet somewhere in the middle.

Oh, yeahhhhhhhhh baby....this is total food porn for me (lol)

Last but not least we added another side of mixed veggies, no pic (my bad) but you can make any veggie you like! Eat your veggies! ;)

All in all i was really pleased and will definitely be making this again, and will be sure to include the bacon and Worcestershire sauce for the meatloaf next time around.

Oh and please keep in mind that you can totally make this with all gluten and dairy you want. Real breadcrumbs, dairy milk and butter...its your world!

Buen provecho!

Love and light, 

A

Oh, yeah...I had some extra meat mixture left over and decided to make some meatballs with it. YUM.

A bowl of mashed potatoes with a few meatballs on top and a sprinkle of diced onions, and shredded cheddar cheese.

 .....Waaaaaaaaaa?! Oh i said it. And ate it. 

;)