Thaw your ground beef or use fresh. Place your ground beef into a large mixing bowl. Add your egg and seasoning mixture to the beef. I use my hands to combine the ingredients. You can use kitchen gloves to prevent contamination. Do not over mix, this will make the meatloaf tough. Once it's combined well, add the oatmeal. Combine the beef and oatmeal.

Place in a 13x9-inch glass dish or pan. I pat it down lightly and shape it somewhat so that it is even and there is space around all of the edges. You do not want to pat or press it to much or it will take longer to cook. I bake mine at 350°F for about 1 hour and 15 minutes.

I like mine to be thoroughly done and well browned. I do not cover the pan. You can check for doneness. All ovens will be slightly different.

You can add an additional 1/2 cup of ketchup to the top in the last 15 minutes of cooking. I just take the bottle and run it back and forth to make a design. Ketchup has sugar in it, so it bakes to a kind of gooey, sweet yumminess!

There are many variations - you can use BBQ sauce, you can add cheese to the top in the last 10 minutes. Really just put in it what you like. My kids do not like green peppers, but I think they would be great in this version of meatloaf. I would probably add about 1/4 to 1/2 a cup of chopped or minced depending on how well you like them.

Submitted by: Dawn Collins