Low Carb Cheese Stuffed Meat Loaf

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I’ve made various keto and low-carb meat loafs over the years. This recipe represents a combination of my favorite elements of the many recipes I’ve tried. Bacon topped? Fresh mozzarella stuffed? Yes and yes, please! Sauteed mushrooms and shallots help keep the loaf moist. Give it a try and let me know how you like it!

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Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon olive oil

  • 1 cup diced mushrooms (white or baby bella)

  • 2 medium shallots, diced

  • 1 tablespoon diced garlic

  • 3/4 pound 85% lean ground beef

  • 3/4 pound ground sausage (spicy, if you like!)

  • 3/4 cup low-carb flour (I use: Bob’s Red Mill Paleo Flour)

  • 1/2 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese

  • 2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning (or make your own mix with of some or all of the following: dried basil, oregano, parsley, rosemary, thyme, sage)

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper

  • 2 eggs

  • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

  • 8 oz. package fresh buffalo mozzarella cheese (I use: BelGioioso Cheese Mozzarella Fresh Sliced)

  • 12 oz. package center cut bacon

  • Sugar Free Marinara Sauce

How to Make It

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 8x8 baking dish.

  2. Saute mushrooms, shallots and garlic until soft (5-8 minutes).

  3. Mix together the ground beef, pork, Parmesan cheese and dry ingredients. Use your hands — they really are the best tool for this step!

  4. Mix in the eggs and Worcestershire sauce.

  5. Layer as follows into a meatloaf pan or 9x9 baking dish: spread half the meat mixture in the pan, add a layer of sliced mozzarella, cover the cheese with remaining meat mixture, and top with a layer of sliced bacon.

  6. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 70-80 minutes or until a thermometer reads 160 degrees.

  7. Warm marinara sauce (microwave or stove top) while loaf cools for five minutes.

  8. Cut the loaf into 6 or 9 servings, depending how hungry ya’ll are. And pour sauce over. Enjoy!

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Low Carb Tamale Pie

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I’m playing around with some low-carb crusts for Tamale Pie. This one turned out pretty good! The crust was crunchy on the outside, a little fluffy on the inside and slightly sweet. Similar but different to the masa or dough of a typical tamale.

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HOW TO MAKE IT

This recipe is the perfect solution for left over carnitas. When it’s just Michael and me, we always have an extra 1 and 1/2 to 2 pounds of meat left. For the carnitas: just put 3 and 1/2 to 4 pound pork shoulder in a slow cooker on low for 8 hours rubbed in a nice carnitas blend of seasonings, set atop roughly chopped onion and 1 and 1/2 cups chicken stock.

We make low-carb (lettuce leaf) tacos for the first meal. Then use the left over carnitas for this Tamale Pie recipe.

In an 8 inch casserole dish. Layer as follows:

  1. Carnitas

  2. Sauce (I mixed salsa with cream cheese and cream. But enchilada sauce with chopped green chiles is another good option. I’m going to try that next.)

  3. One cup of shredded cheese (I used the pre-shredded Mexican mix)

  4. Then dollop and spread dough on top

Cook at 325 degrees for about 50 minutes to get the top of the crust a little crispy. Let it cool a little and enjoy!

TAMALE CRUST

For the crust, I found this recipe on All Day I Dream About Food. Carolyn has many wonderful low-carb recipes. I’m a big fan!