Becky's Amazing Meatloaf

This came out of my most favorite cookbook and if you know me, you know which cookbook I am talking about. I have been searching for a good meatloaf recipe for years. Nothing ever seems as good as my grandmother's meatloaf, though supposedly she just used the Quaker Oats recipe. This does not taste like my grandmother's, but this recipe is amazing, and by far the best meatloaf I have ever tasted. And it does not include any MSG or anything like that!

BECKY'S AMAZING MEATLOAF

Seasoning Mix:

2 tsp. dry mustard

1-1/2 tsp. dried basil

2 tsp. paprika

1 tsp. pepper

1-1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. garlic powder

1-1/2 tsp. dried thyme

1 tsp. onion powder

Meatloaf:

8 slices bacon, diced

1 c. tomato juice

1-1/2 c. chopped onions

1 lb. ground beef

1 c. green pepper, chopped

2 lg. eggs, beaten

1 c. celery, chopped

1/2 c. saltine cracker crumbs

4 bay leaves

Cook the bacon in a large skillet. In the drippings cook the onions for 7 to 10 minutes. Add pepper, celery, bay leaves and one tablespoon of seasoning mix. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 minutes. Add the remaining seasoning mix, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring. Remove from heat, and then discard bay leaves. In a large bowl, combine vegetable mix and tomato juice. In another bowl, stir together meat, eggs and cracker crumbs. Then add the veggie mix and squish it all together. Turn the mixture into a sprayed 9 X 13 pan and shape into a loaf; don’t press to the edges. Bake at 350° for 50 minutes. Serves 8

A few notes: I must admit I misread the recipe where it says "tomato juice" my mind took that as "tomato sauce" as in what comes in a can and didn't realize until later it really meant tomato juice. I didn't have any tomato sauce, so I watered down some tomato paste to measure what I thought a 1/2 cup of tomato sauce would be, and it worked out fine. I think I will use tomato sauce next time, not juice. I did leave out the celery as someone in my family hates any kind of celery in anything. Also to me this really serves 6, not 8. If you are watching your salt intake I recommend you totally skip the added salt as the saltines will add salt, next time I will add only half the amount of salt. I think this would freeze well (after cooking of course).