• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The Nourishing Gourmet

Nourishing. Satisfying. Gourmet.

  • THM Coaching
  • About
    • Privacy
    • Contact
  • Recipes
  • Cookbooks
    • Everyday Nourishing Food
    • Salad Cookbook
    • Soup Cookbook

Easy Dinner Recipes

How to Make Mini Meatloaves (healthy, paleo, and allergen-friendly)

February 13, 2014 by KimiHarris 3 Comments

Mini Meatloaves that are grain, dairy, and egg-free and super simple to make! Kids love them.

Moist and flavorful, these uber simple mini meatloaves are a quick and easy dinner that is greatly enjoyed around here – especially when served with baked fries and homemade ketchup!

Using coconut flour instead of bread crumbs make this meatloaf recipe grain-free (and egg and dairy-free!) and even easier to make than the typical version. I love having easy dinner recipes, and this is definitely one of them. I am a firm believer in having a list of simple dinners that you can easily make, but are nutritious and welcomed by your family. It’s a great way to keep on track in feeding your family well, a help in keeping within your food budget, and important for making  real food realistic.

When buying meat from the store, and not in bulk directly from a farmer, grassfed beef can get really expensive. (Look for an upcoming post on the benefits of grassfed beef.) Ground beef is almost always the most frugal choice, and so I like recipes, – like this one – to help keep our food budget low. Meatloaf is known as a frugal main dish, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t delicious!

Here are a couple other easy and inexpensive dinners using beef:

  • Mexican Beef Bowls: A simple favorite.
  • Simple Baked Italian Meatballs (also grain/dairy/egg-free): These can be used in so many ways!
  • 7 Layer Mexican Dip: Make this as simple or as fancy as you’d like.
  • Ground Beef and Cabbage: I make this pocket filling and serve it over rice or quinoa all the time!  We like it with butter and tamari (here is a favorite brand #affiliate)
  • Autumn Beef Stew: Stew is a great way to enjoy meat, especially with homemade, nutritious beef broth!

When grassfed beef is bought directly from farmers, it is generally very lean, and thus, is very easy to use in recipes like this. We’ve eaten up our ¼ of a cow from a local farmer, so I’ve been buying my meat from a local store. Their grassfed beef is 20% fat (I assume because they process some of the fat with the meat when making it). If you use fatty ground beef, you will have a lot of drainage during the cooking process, but that’s okay. It’s very easy to simply leave all the drained fat behind, as once cooked, you can lift the mini meatloaves right out of the pan, and the fat is left behind. Just be forewarned that your mini meatloaves will shrink a lot!

To make this even more nutritious, you can hide some ground liver in the meat for the meatloaf. (It sounds gross to some, but is hardly noticeable in taste). I also have a planned post on that topic in the upcoming weeks!

A word about coconut flour: They can absorb moisture differently. I’ve been using Let’s Do Organic’s coconut flour lately, just because it’s widely available. (They are also available here at my affiliates Amazon and Vitacost. If you aren’t up to making your own ketchup, you can also find organic and corn syrup-free ketchups there – Vitacost has a lot of options.) You may need to adjust the recipe slightly when using other brands of coconut flour. If it seems too dry, just add a little milk, or more ketchup. If it seems a little too wet, add a bit more coconut flour. Meatloaf is very forgivable, thankfully, so any little adjusting you need to do should be fine.

How to Make Mini Meatloaves (healthy, paleo, and allergen-friendly)
 
Author:
Kimi @ The Nourishing Gourmet
Serves: 4-6
Prep time: 7 mins
Cook time: 25 mins
Total time: 32 mins
Print
 
I’ve made this a couple different ways. Sometimes I’ll grate about ½ a small onion and add it to the mix. That’s delicious too, and adds a bit more moisture.
Ingredients
  • 1 ¼ pounds ground beef (grassfed, lean beef preferred)
  • 2 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard
  • ½ cup homemade ketchup (or best quality you can find/buy)
  • 1 teaspoon unrefined salt
  • 2 tablespoons coconut flour
  • ½ teaspoon each dried thyme, oregano, and basil (or 1 ½ teaspoon of Italian Seasoning)
  • 1 large garlic clove, peeled and finely minced or put through a garlic press
Instructions
  1. Put rack in middle of oven and preheat oven to 425F.
  2. Put aside half the ketchup, and dump ¼ cup of it, and the rest of the ingredients in a medium bowl, and mash together with your hands. Divide into 12 balls and press into a muffin tin (if you are working with very lean meat, oil the pan before, but with most ground beef you don’t need to worry about it sticking because of the fat content).
  3. Divide the rest of the ketchup over the top of the meatloaves, and spread evenly.
  4. Place in the oven and cook for 20- 25 minutes, or until no longer pink in the middle. Remove from pan and serve.
  5. Serve 2 to 3 per person.
3.2.2265

 

Filed Under: $10 Main, 52 ways to save money on a healthy diet, Main Dishes, Nourishing Frugal Recipes Tagged With: Beef, Easy Dinner Recipes, Easy Dinners, Flour, Homemade Ketchup, Meatloaf, Meatloaves, Mini Meatloaves, Simple Dinners

14 Easy Dinner Recipes (That are healthy & frugal too!)

February 6, 2014 by KimiHarris 5 Comments

14 easy recipes that are healthy and frugal too!

When eating a healthy diet, I think it’s important to have a list of quick and inexpensive meal ideas and easy dinner recipes to have on hand. Even in the most well-balanced and calm life, there will be nights when you don’t feel like cooking elaborate meals, or times when you need an especially frugal meal to stretch out your budget.

With that in mind, I thought I’d pull together some of my favorite easy and frugal recipes together in one place!

Easy and Frugal Dinner Recipes

Simple Baked Mini Meatballs that are paleo, and frugal too!

1. Paleo Meatballs

These grain-free meatballs (egg- and dairy-free too!) are some of the easiest ones to makes, but they are also a great frugal way to enjoy meat in many meals. These are on my $1 dollar menu, as a serving costs about 1 dollar! I use them in a variety of ways, including serving them with a mushroom sauce.

2. Persian Lentil Soup

Lentils are low in phytic acid, making the soaking process optional. This recipe for Persian Lentil Soup is gently flavored and the ingredients kept basic for an especially frugal and easy meal. To make it even more flavorful and nutritious, use my almost free chicken broth! 

3. Curried Lentils with Apples and Onions

Another lentil dish is this lovely lentil curry,  gently sweetened with apples, and flavorful from curry powder and garam masala.

Creamy Balsamic Vinaigrette, plus seven more tasty, nourishing salad dressings

4. Main Dish Salads

I love throwing together a main dish salad with extra cut up vegetables, leftover roasted chicken, Bpa-free canned or precooked beans, or canned salmon or low-mercury tuna, nuts or seeds, and a homemade salad dressing. It’s a very fast meal, and can be very frugal as well!

5. Thai Broth with Chicken

One of my popular recipes from my cookbook, Ladled, is this Simple Thai broth. Make is a main dish by serving it over rice noodles and cooking some chopped chicken in it too. Sooo good! It’s also very frugal if you use homemade broth, and don’t use too many “extras”. If you have broth on hand, it’s extremely easy and fast to put together.

6. Sloppy Joe’s in a Bowl

This unusual way to enjoy Sloppy Joe’s is a super easy meal that is also inexpensive to make!

7. Congee

Congee is an Asian-styled rice porridge. I have a section in my cookbook, Ladled, for them, but here is a Miso version. I especially like the broth based ones – such a fun way to get in that nutritious, inexpensive broth! This is a filling meal, and can be made with the most basic ingredients.

simplechickennoodlesoup

8. Chicken Noodle Soup

This chicken noodle soup makes its own broth while it cooks. Yes, it does take a couple hours to simmer, but it’s a ten-minute operation before that point.

9. Roasted Meats and Vegetables

This simple, one pan meal can be put together quickly and makes an easy dinner, and you get to relax during the roasting time.

10. Bacon Frittata

This basic, but delicious frittata is a great simple meal to make for any of the three main meals of the day! This version is dairy-free.

Sweet Potato Crusted Frittata

11. Sweet Potato Crusted Spinach Frittata

Or, why not try this sweet potato crusted version? It’s gotten rave reviews, and is just a little more work.

12. Oatmeal

Truth be told, we love oatmeal. It makes a stick-to-your-ribs type meal, especially when served with butter and pure maple syrup. So yummy. And yes, we eat it for dinner sometimes. We just did last night, in fact! And you can’t beat it for simplicity and frugality!

13. Pumpkin Baked Oatmeal

To make oatmeal a special treat, try out this baked, pumpkin oatmeal!  It only takes a few minutes the night before/in the morning, and then a few minutes before you stick it in the oven to make.

14. Soups

And of course, soups are on the top of my list for easy, simple dinners. One example out of many is this German Dumpling Soup. Yum!

I’d love to hear your easy dinner recipes using healthy ingredients too!

Filed Under: 52 ways to save money on a healthy diet, Main Dishes, Nourishing Frugal Recipes, Nourishing Frugal Tips Tagged With: Easy Dinner Recipes, Easy Dinners, Easy Meals, Frugal And Easy Meals, Frugal Dinner Recipes, Frugal Meal Ideas

Primary Sidebar

ConvertKit Form

Get Every Recipe

And the insider's view from our kitchen

Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription.

There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again.

We won't send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time. Powered by ConvertKit

Follow Me

  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS

Search

Please Read:

The information you find here at The Nourishing Gourmet is meant to help you become a better cook! This site is primarily for sharing family friendly recipes. It's not meant to give medical advice or to make any health claims on the prevention or curing of diseases.This site is only for informational and educational purposes. Please discuss with your own, qualified health care provider before adding in supplements or making any changes in your diet. Also, any links to sponsors or affiliates (including Amazon) may give me a percentage of the sale or a pay per click. Thank you for supporting this site.

Categories

  • $10 Main (42)
  • $5 Dishes (43)
  • 52 ways to save money on a healthy diet (53)
  • AIP (23)
  • Baked Goods (83)
  • Beverages (72)
  • Breakfast and Brunch (61)
  • Condiments (8)
  • Dairy Free (492)
  • Desserts (184)
  • Dietary Needs (6)
  • Egg Free (11)
  • Egg Free (86)
  • For the Kids (66)
  • For the Love of Food and Books (18)
  • Gluten Free (484)
  • Grain Free (95)
  • Health (75)
  • Kitchen Tools (4)
  • Main Dishes (126)
  • Nourishing Frugal Recipes (167)
  • Nourishing Frugal Tips (70)
  • Nourishing Practices (56)
  • Nutrient Dense Foods (70)
  • Q and A (15)
  • Salads (39)
  • Sides (101)
  • Snacks (124)
  • Soups (50)
  • The Healthy $1 Menu (21)
  • The Low Energy Guide to Healthy Cooking (18)
  • THM (2)
  • Trim Healthy Mama (2)
  • Uncategorized (846)
  • Vegan (241)
  • Vegetarian (361)

Recent Posts

  • 2 Ingredient Peppermint Bark
  • Herbal Hibiscus Lemonade (Keto, THM)
  • Creamy Curry Red Lentil Soup
  • One-Pot Gluten-Free Mac and Cheese
  • Healthy Pumpkin Spice Granola
  • Crispy Pumpkin Spice Granola (oil-free)
  • Why I Use THM Principles Now
  • Vietnamese Beef Noodle Salad
  • Coconut Flour Pancakes
  • Instant Pot Mexican Shredded Chicken

Recent Comments

  • Dorene St G on Cracker Toffee (Easy Peasy Christmas Candy)
  • Nadia Kriston on Finding a Toaster Oven Without Nonstick
  • KimiHarris on How to make heavenly coconut milk whipped cream (with an isi dispenser)
  • KimiHarris on Autumn Beef Stew (Tomato Free)
  • KimiHarris on How to make heavenly coconut milk whipped cream (with an isi dispenser)

Fresh: Nourishing Salads for All Seasons

Get Every Recipe

And the insider's view from our kitchen

Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription.

There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again.

We won't send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time. Powered by ConvertKit

Footer

Privacy

Copyright © 2023 · Foodie Pro & The Genesis Framework