Meatloaf Muffins with Carrots and Mashed Potatoes

These easy individual Meatloaf Muffins are a fun and creative twist on traditional meatloaf and very kid-friendly. Instead of baking the meatloaf mixture in a large loaf, it’s portioned into a standard muffin pan, resulting in individual, cupcake-sized servings. They’re topped with creamy mashed potatoes for the “frosting”. These freeze very well. They are also great for hiding vegetables. I only added grated carrot, but you can mix in whatever vegetables you want. Finely chopped spinach or cabbage would blend in well, as would grated zucchini.

Meatloaf Cupcakes:
1 lb ground beef (500 g)
1 onion, finely grated
2 small carrots, finely grated
2 eggs
¼ cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
¼ cup tomato ketchup or tomato sauce
1 cup panko or breadcrumbs
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. sea salt
black pepper, freshly ground

Mashed Potato:
2 large or 3 medium potatoes
1 Tbsp. butter
½-1 cup milk

Garnish:
tomato ketchup or tomato sauce
fresh parsley, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C/160°C fan, Gas Mark 4). Spray 8 holes of a muffin tin.

Make the Meatloaf Muffins:
Grate the onion and carrot straight into a large bowl.

Add remaining meatloaf ingredients and use your hands to mix and combine well.

Scoop up ½ cup of mince and use your hands to form a rough ball shape. Press into the muffin tin. The surface should be a slight dome shape.

Repeat with remaining mince. It should make about 8.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until browned on top. Remove from oven.

Make the Mashed Potato:
Peel and dice the potato. Steam or boil until soft but not waterlogged.

Drain, then add butter and ½ cup of milk. Mash using a potato masher until smooth or to your liking. Add extra milk if you need it. The mash needs to be creamy but stiff enough to hold its shape when piped or piled onto the Meatloaf Cupcakes.

Assemble:
Smear a dollop of tomato ketchup on the Meatloaf Cupcakes.

Top with mashed potato, either by piping it or just dolloping it on with a spoon.

Serve with a sprinkle of parsley, if using.

Makes 8 servings.

Cook's Notes:

• After topping with mashed potato, you could bake it for 10 minutes to brown it, or place it until the grill /broiler for a few minutes. But I like the mashed potato without the crunchy surface – more like the icing you actually get on cupcakes.
• To Freeze: Let the cupcakes cool then a fine skin will form on the mashed potato so the cling wrap won't stick to it. Wrap in cling wrap and place in freezer. To reheat, thaw then reheat in the microwave or oven.