Mozzarella-Stuffed Mini Meat Loaves

Name: Mozzarella-Stuffed Mini Meat Loaves
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: 8
Ingredients: 2/3 cup fresh bread crumbs; 1/3 cup milk; 1 egg; 1-1/2 tsp Italian herb seasoning (divided); 1-1/2 tsp EACH garlic powder, onion powder (divided); 3/4 tsp salt; 1/2 tsp pepper (divided); 450 g Canadian lean ground beef; 100 g mozzarella cheese, cut into 8 cubes; 1/2 cup bottled strained tomatoes (passata); 2 tbsp tomato paste; 1 tbsp packed brown sugar; 2 tsp cider vinegar; 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped; 1/2 tsp Italian herb seasoning; 1/4 tsp EACH salt and pepper

in All Recipes, Ground Beef, Meatloaf Comfort Foods, Kid Friendly, Meals in 60 Minutes

Mozzarella-Stuffed Mini Meat Loaves

Prep Time: 25
Cook Time: 50
Total Time: 115
Serving: 8

Print Recipe

Add a gooey, cheesy twist to these mini meat loaves. These mini meat loaves are sure to be a hit with everyone in your family.

Directions

In bowl, mix bread crumbs with milk. Let stand for 5 minutes. Stir in egg, 1 tsp herb seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Mix in ground beef just until combined and no streaks of bread crumb mixture are visible (do not overmix). Shape into 8 meatballs.

Cut mozzarella cheese into 8 cubes. Holding one ball in palm of hand, press opposite index finger into centre to create 1-inch well; place 1 cube of the mozzarella inside. Press meat over to enclose mozzarella and reshape meatball. Repeat with remaining meatballs and mozzarella.

Place 1 meatball into each of 8 wells of lightly greased muffin pan. Stir together bottled strained tomatoes (passata), tomato paste, brown sugar, cider vinegar, 1/2 tsp Italian herb seasoning, ¼ tsp each salt and pepper; spoon over meatballs.

Bake in 400°F oven until instant-read thermometer inserted in several meat loaves reads 160°F, about 15 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes. Sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley.

Combining ground beef with moistened bread crumbs is a great way to keep the meat from drying out or shrinking while cooking.

Passata is a thick paste made from strained tomatoes and can be found in the pasta sauce section of the grocery store.