Turkey Meatloaf Stuffed with Mushrooms, Spinach, and Fresh Herbs

Fall is finally here with cooler temps, and that means making meatloaf, among other things.  Meatloaf has always been comfort food for me.  One of the best things that my Mom made was meatloaf. (I was a picky eater as a kid).  Believe it or not, the first thing that my hubby and I had an argument about was how we made  meatloaf.  He made his meatloaf with bread and milk, and I had always made mine with tomato sauce and oatmeal, along with the ground meat, egg, and spices.How do you make your meatloaf?

I made the meatloaf pictured above, which  is low sodium and low fat. Over the years, I have modified my recipe to be healthier. I used  ground turkey, egg, low sodium tomato sauce, oatmeal, and chopped onion. Then, I wanted to add a layer of chopped  mushrooms, and fresh spinach. My hubby grew up eating spinach from a can, so he never wanted fresh cooked spinach,  Now, he's converting to a fresh spinach lover, Yay!  I also used fresh basil and oregano from our waning herb garden. The herbs, spinach and mushrooms  add so much flavor and color, and I added no salt. I accidentally didn't add all of the tomato sauce to the ground turkey mix, so I just poured the rest of the can over the top of the meatloaf, before I baked it, and sprinkled with the fresh herbs,  We love this meatloaf which makes a wonderful dinner with sweet potatoes and a salad. My hubby takes meatloaf sandwiches for lunch, but have I have never liked meatloaf sandwiches.
My meatloaf has to be warm.

The meatloaf before going into the oven

Turkey Meatloaf Stuffed with Mushroom, Spinach, and  Herbs

Ingredients:
1 lb of ground turkey,  I used 93/7
1 egg
1 small onion, chopped
1 8 oz can low sodium tomato sauce
1/2-1 cup oatmeal, uncooked  I used rolled oats
1 cup chopped mushrooms
1 cup fresh or frozen spinach, chopped  I used fresh spinach
2 Tbsp, divided,  fresh basil, chopped or 1 tsp, dried
2 Tbsp divided, fresh oregano, chopped or 1 tsp dried


Directions:
1. Combine ground turkey egg and onion in large bowl, and  1 tbsp of basil and oregano, and  mix until well combined. 
2. Add 6 oz tomato sauce until well mixed
3. Stir in oatmeal until desired consistency.
4. Pat half of meatloaf mixture into a 9 x 5 baking pan**, sprayed with cooking spray.
5. Add the layer chopped mushrooms to meatloaf in pan.
6. Layer chopped spinach on top of mushrooms.
7. Pat remaining meatloaf mix over the spinach and pour remaining tomato sauce over the top of the meatloaf.
8. Garnish the top of meatloaf with the rest of the fresh herbs.
9. Bake in 350 oven for 1 hour-1 hr 15 min, 165 degrees on the meat thermometer or until juices are clear.
10. Cool on rack for 10 min, before serving, Enjoy!

**Cooks Note
I like to bake my meatloaf, free form, in a pan larger than the meatloaf, so the juices and fat, if any,  flow away from the meatloaf. I packed the meatloaf mix in a 9x5 pan sprayed with cooking spray, then removed it from the baking pan to the casserole dish. 

I I linked up my recipe to Brandie@The Country Cook's Weekend Potluck #37
Stop by and say Hi to Brandie!