Honey harissa mini meatloaves with mint yogurt sauce
Plus, the real reason we Super Bowl (right?)
Hello! It’s the first week of February and with it comes a sudden burst of what feels like spring (a few days in the 80s!), two major food “holidays” coming up, and a sudden urge for lighter and brighter everything, from what I’m cooking to what I’m wearing.
This week’s recipe is one I’ve been testing off and on for a solid month now. It’s such a great enjoy right now meal that will also serve you well if you’re meal prepping or cooking for 1-2 people.
Good meatloaf is underrated in my opinion, and mini loaves that are the perfect portions and freezer-friendly? Even better. (It’s also worth noting this will be the most times I’ve used the word “meatloaves” in my entire life. 😜).
If you’re not familiar with harissa, it’s an African chili paste that’s a wonderful condiment to have on hand. Harissa will add flavor and heat to so many dishes, from scrambled eggs to a simple vinaigrette to main-dish-meals like this baked harissa chicken and vegetables (from the blog archives).
I often pick up a jar at Trader Joe’s which makes a really tasty harissa for a great price. This one is also good - I found it to be a tad spicier.
Veggies like carrots and onions bulk up the mini meatloaves and add tenderness to the ground turkey, while harissa and other seasonings give it incredible flavor. A harissa and honey glaze on top is a deliciously sweet and spicy touch, while a simple mint yogurt sauce cuts through the heat with its cool creaminess.
The mini meatloaves and the roasted vegetables (broccolini with bell pepper and cabbage) bakes on two separate sheet pans. If you want something heartier, something more of a classic meat(loaf)-and-potatoes combination, make a simple cauliflower mash. (The microwave version I shared in this post comes together extra quick!)
Or try this butternut squash and sweet potato mash. The subtle sweetness of the creamy mash paired with the spicy harissa-seasoned meat is just so good together.
There are so many options for how to enjoy this dish! Which is actually quite perfect, since you might have some some leftover meatloaf (loaves?) anyways.
Before I get to the recipe, what are your plans for the big game this weekend? And by that, I mean what will you be eating?
That’s the real question and if you need help answering it, I have some ideas for you (because snacking is half all the fun). Each of these recipes are low carb, low glycemic and healthier versions of game day favorites!
Here are some savory snack ideas:
Zucchini Fritter Mini Pizzas (a paid subscriber recipe but I removed the paywall this week)
Crispy Keto Chicken Wings (try it with this garlic parmesan wing sauce!)
Keto Italian Meatballs (pair with your favorite dipping sauces)
And a few low-carb, low-glycemic sweet treats:
I created this grain-free granola recipe to mimic the vanilla almond butter flavor from Purely Elizabeth, so you can imagine how this reader comment made my day!
“I've been looking for a recipe similar to the Purely Elizabeth granola since I can't justify paying for multiple bags of granola anymore. This one is so good and tastes almost exactly like it, and I love that you can control the amount and clusters, and how long it's baked for. Highly recommend!!”
-Meaghan (for Grain-Free Vanilla Almond Butter Granola)
I usually try to stick to the 30-minute-and-under dinner, so I’ll let you know right off the bat that this one will take a tiny bit longer to prepare. It still clocks in around 40-45 minutes total, and much of that is not active prep time as you’ll be waiting for the oven to work its magic.
There is some chopping (or grating) involved, plus a quick sauté of the veggies before you mix them into the meat.
Once the meatloaves are baking, you’ll arrange more vegetables on a separate sheet pan and quickly season them for roasting. Pop that into the oven and let everything cook for short while, then make a quick yogurt mint sauce that requires just 3 ingredients.
The recipe, printable PDF, and nutritional info is below.
Yield: 6 servings
Prep time: 40-45 minutes
For the meatloaf:
1 tablespoon avocado oil or olive oil
1 onion, finely diced or grated
1 carrot, finely diced or grated
1-½ teaspoons, minced garlic
1-½ pounds ground turkey
1-¼ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon coriander (optional)
2 tablespoons harissa paste
¼ cup finely diced parsley
½ cup blanched almond flour
2 tablespoons flaxseed meal
1 egg
2 tablespoons chicken or vegetable broth
For the glaze:
1-½ tablespoons harissa paste
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
For the vegetables:
2 handfuls of thick-sliced green cabbage
1 small bunch of broccolini (about ¼ to ½ pound)
½ large bell pepper, cut into long slices
1-½ tablespoon avocado oil
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon garlic powder
For the mint yogurt sauce:
½ cup full-fat Greek yogurt
1-2 tablespoons lemon juice
Dash of salt
1 tablespoon chopped mint
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a baking mat.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the oil, then add the carrot, onion, and garlic to the pan and cook for 5-7 minutes to soften, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.
Add the ground turkey to a large mixing bowl and combine it with the salt, pepper, garlic powder, ground coriander, harissa paste, parsley, almond flour, flaxseed, egg and chicken broth. Mix well, just until it’s combined.
Scoop out heaping ½ to ¾-cup portions onto a baking sheet. You should end up with about 6 mini meat loaves. Pat them into small loaf shapes (dipping your hands in a bowl of water will prevent the meat from sticking to your hands).
Mix together the glaze ingredients and spoon about 1 heaping teaspoon of glaze onto each of the loaves, spreading it out to coat the top. You should use all of the glaze.
Transfer to the oven and bake at 400°F for 20-22 minutes (you’ll slide in the tray with the veggies about halfway through this bake time).
While the meatloaves bake, arrange the vegetables on the second baking sheet. Drizzle with 1-½ tablespoons of oil, then season generously with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Try to spread them out so they’re not too close to each other when roasting.
After the meatloaf has baked for 12 minutes, slide the sheet pan with the veggies into the oven and let it roast for the rest of the cook time– about 10-12 minutes total. I like to swap the pans about halfway through, just to ensure they’re cooking evenly.
Stir the yogurt sauce ingredients together in a separate bowl.
Remove the meatloaves and vegetables from the oven. Let the meatloaf rest for 5 minutes, then serve with the roasted veggies and yogurt sauce.
The meatloaf mixture can be made up to 1 day ahead of time.
I prefer grating the onion and carrot versus chopping them, since it’s quicker and the smaller shreds are even and mix well into the meatloaf. For an even faster prep, you can shred them in a food processor.
This recipe makes 6 mini meatloaves. The sheet pan of vegetables makes enough for about 4 servings. We usually end up with a couple of the mini meatloaves leftover.
If you’re preparing some for little eaters and want a non-spicy meatloaf, simply reserve enough of the meat mixture to make 1-2 of the loaves before adding the harissa into the meat mixture. Skip adding the harissa glaze to the meatloaf for the kids or make a separate glaze using 1 tablespoon of tomato paste instead of harissa.
The meatloaf is done when the internal temperature reaches 165°F when tested with a meat thermometer. You can remove it from the oven when it’s just below that, as the temp will continue to rise even after the meatloaf has been pulled from the oven.
You can make this into traditional meatloaf, too! Pat the meat mixture together into one large loaf on the baking sheet. Top with the harissa glaze and bake at 350°F for 40-45 minutes.
Almond flour and flaxseed meal: This combination is our low-carb substitute for breadcrumbs which is traditionally used in meatloaf. You can substitute the almond flour and flaxseed combo with ½ cup of these paleo “breadcrumbs,” if preferred. If using, I would also omit the garlic powder and reduce the salt by half since the crumbs are already seasoned.
Honey: Honey contains 17 grams of sugar per tablespoon, which adds about 3 grams of sugar to the glaze for every meatloaf. If this is too much and you’re keeping your added sugars extra low, substitute the honey with the same amount of liquid allulose or a keto-friendly maple syrup or honey. You can also sweeten the glaze with drops of pure monk fruit or stevia.
Carrot: You can substitute the grated carrot for ½ a large grated zucchini.
Yogurt: For a dairy-free substitute, use coconut yogurt. Or make a simple tahini sauce instead by mixing ⅓ cup drippy tahini with a few tablespoons of water (until it’s a thinner consistency). Add 1 tablespoon lemon juice and salt to taste.
Mint: You can substitute the mint in the yogurt sauce for the same amount of chopped cilantro.
Ground turkey: This recipe will work with other ground meat, too, such as ground chicken, ground beef, or ground lamb.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is calculated by MyFitnessPal, based on an estimate of 6 servings.
Calories: 371
Total fat: 21 g
Total carbohydrate: 15 g
Dietary fiber: 5 g
Total sugar: 6 g
Protein: 31 g
Total net carbs: 10 g
If you enjoyed this recipe, I’d be so grateful if you tapped the ♥️ button, shared a comment, or forwarded this newsletter to someone who might appreciate it. Thank you for your support!
Have a fantastic rest of your week!
Abby
