Buds Beef and Mushroom Meatloaf

Recipe #88: http://all-bran.ca/en/recipedetails.aspx?RecipetypeID=13922

Not to be gross on a food blog, but I've been coding a LOT of colonoscopy charts lately so fibre has been on my mind. It seems that the standard recommendation by gastroenterologists for those of us who are ageing is to increase your fibre (aim for 30g daily) and water intake. That being said, this recipe may help you for the fibre goal.

I really can't quite remember how I stumbled across the All-Bran recipe section of their website since I normally don't even eat their products, but it does have some excellent ideas for increasing your fibre with great-tasting results. However, unless you are REALLY good at cooking while you're on the phone, try not to combine the two like I did...

As far as ingredient substitutions, mine were pretty minimal. I had the squeeze-tube parsely on had so I used that up (came to 1/4 cup total). I thought I'd bought the All-Bran Buds cereal, but it turned out that I had the regular kind (not Flakes) so I used that. I don't really see what difference it makes once it becomes soggy with the beef stock. Speaking of beef stock, mine was the 25% less sodium version, and I did not add salt to the recipe. I actually forgot to add pepper because I was on the phone with a friend in crisis while cooking. I'm not entirely sure if all of the beef I found in the freezer was extra-lean, but it probably was because that's what we usually buy. My egg happened to have expired a while ago.....

My biggest mistake with this recipe was misreading "cook the mushrooms" for "cook the meat". Thus, I started to cook the meat with the oil when suddenly I realized I was not supposed to be doing that. This is why I should not cook while on the phone. In the end, because I cooked some of the meat at the beginning, my "loaf" is a bit more 'fluid' than it should be. It still tastes fine, but the texture isn't quite what a person expects from "meatloaf". Consider yourself warned.

For those who fear the fibre factor, it's really not an issue from what I can tell. The Meatatarian ate it and said it was tasty although I think he's a little confused as to why I'm forcing fibre on him. Ah, the joys of being the victim of a cook-in-training... I didn't really notice the cereal so it's not as if your meatloaf will be crunchy or something. I think it adds good bind and bulk, actually. I'm glad I didn't add even more parsely - I'm not sure it really needs to be there in the first place because it lends a rather green cast to the finished product which might offend some. It does add flavour, but I might try something different next time. Regardless, I'm glad it is no longer lingering in the fridge.

Time for leftovers!