Bison Meatloaf

I'll have to admit, I love meatloaf. My mom made great meatloaf growing up, so I was never scarred from a dry, unflavored meat block. I have stopped buying beef for quite a while now. Occasionally I will buy Bison instead; packed with flavor, iron, and leaner than the leanest of beef. The thing I like about Bison is that no matter how much you cook it, it is still tender and juicy. Bison to me is also not gamey. Here is my meatloaf for 2 (with lunch the next day). I packed it full of crimini mushrooms, red onion, and served it with homemade mashed potatoes and garlic sauteed spinach (and pinot noir).

What you will need:

1 pound ground bison

1 1/2c crimini mushrooms, small diced

1c red onion, small diced

1T fresh sage, chopped

1T fresh thyme, chopped

1 egg

3/4c tomato sauce, divided

1/2c breadcrumbs*

1/2t salt

1/2t black pepper

1/4t dried crushed red pepper flakes

* I highly recommend panko bread crumbs. If you are like me and have to use gluten free bread crumbs, add a little extra.

Preheat the oven to 375. In a medium skillet, heat 1T of olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and mushrooms. Saute for about 5 minutes. This will remove the water from the mushrooms and leave the onions translucent and tender. Remove from heat, add sage and thyme, and cool slightly. While that is cooling, in a bowl, mix the bison, egg, breadcrumbs, 1/2c tomato sauce, salt, and pepper. Shape into a roughly 6x3 loaf and place it in a baking pan. Place in the oven for 30 mins. In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1/4c tomato sauce with the red pepper. Pour over the meatloaf. Continue to cook for 20 minutes longer. Rest for 5 minutes.