Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf

Most people think cheeseburgers are off-limits when trying to eat cleaner. Good news. They are wrong.

One of my recipe goals has been to take my favorite comfort foods (cheeseburger being one of them) and recreate them into clean eating foods. So far, we have this Cheeseburger Wrap, Cheeseburger Stuffed Peppers, Cheeseburger Soup, Cheeseburger Salad, and now we have this Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf recipe.

Need more recipe inspiration? See my post on healthy cheeseburger recipes.

Reasons you’ll love this recipe

• This is not the old-school classic meatloaf of the ’80s. This cheeseburger meatloaf is bursting with tons of flavor from the seasonings, cheese, and of course, bacon! It’s super tasty.
• Healthy. The hidden gem to this recipe is the ground turkey. It keeps the meatloaf low in saturated fat and calories without losing flavor. It’s also high protein and low-carb.
• Easy to prepare. All you need to do is mix the ingredients in a large bowl, top with the bacon, and bake. 
• Meal Prep & Freezer Friendly. Meatloaf is my favorite to make ahead of time. You can prepare on Sunday to warm up during the week or make a few loaves to freeze for later on.

Ingredients

• Ground turkey. Organic ground turkey keeps this healthy cheeseburger meatloaf lean and low in saturated fat. But don’t worry, the flavor is outstanding, and nobody will know it’s healthy. Wegmans and Whole Foods offer delicious clean ground turkey. If you prefer to order online, then Butcher Box Ground Turkey is my favorite. 
• Breadcrumbs and milk. Sometimes I use bread and milk (also called a panade), and other times, I’ll use bread crumbs and milk. It’s essential to keep any meatloaf recipe moist, especially turkey meatloaf. It works with turkey meatballs too.
• Hamburger Seasoning. You can find this seasoning in your local grocery store with the other seasonings. 
• Worcestershire sauce. A big complaint with any ground turkey recipe is the lack of flavor. Adding Worcestershire sauce is my favorite way to give turkey meatloaf a “meaty” flavor. I also use it in turkey burgers.
• Grated parmesan. Fresh parmesan always gives the best flavor, but a high-quality store-bought brand will work too. You can also use grated romano or asiago cheese.
• Eggs. Eggs bind the other ingredients together and provide the meatloaf with structure.
• Ketchup and mustard. What’s a burger without this duo? Make sure to read the labels when purchasing ketchup. Try to grab clean ketchup that doesn’t include high fructose syrup. Also, I mostly use yellow mustard, but spicy brown mustard is tasty.
• Shredded sharp cheddar cheese. Pre shredded bags of cheddar cheese are fine, but if you can shred it fresh, I highly recommend it. You can’t beat the ooey-gooey super tasty flavor of freshly shredded cheddar cheese.
• Bacon. Of course, it wouldn’t be a bacon cheeseburger without the bacon. To keep this meatloaf clean and healthy, I recommend purchasing high-quality bacon free of nitrates and other additives. Also, regular sliced bacon works better than thick. You can use thick-sliced, but you’ll need to broil it a little longer to get it crisp. It also adds more grease and fat.

Cooking Tips

• Use turkey bacon. Many people ask if they can use turkey bacon. You can, but I think pork bacon is so much better with this recipe. Turkey bacon doesn’t crisp as nicely and gives the meatloaf a different flavor. Also, I haven’t been able to find clean turkey bacon I like.
• Use ground beef. Ground beef will work in this bacon cheeseburger meatloaf but it will increase the saturated fat. For the healthiest option I recommend purchasing an organic grass-fed 95/5 or 97/3 mix. I wouldn’t use ground chuck for this recipe as it’s too high in fat, calories, and cholesterol.
• Swap in a different cheese. Pepper jack, Colby jack, and swiss cheese are all delicious in this cheeseburger meatloaf. Use your favorite!
• Make it gluten-free. If you have a gluten sensitivity then swap in gluten-free breadcrumbs and also make sure to read the labels of the other ingredients.
• Add in some extras. Chopped dill pickles, pickle relish, chopped onions, are all delicious in this meatloaf. Simply add to the meat mixture before baking it.
• Use a baking sheet or meatloaf pan. There is grease from the bacon that accumulates around the meatloaf as it cooks, so making this recipe on a baking sheet works best. But a loaf pan with a drip insert will work too.

Here are all of my cooking tips for making a delicious healthy meatloaf recipe.

How to Make Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf

• Start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees.
• In a large mixing bowl, use your hands to press the breadcrumbs and milk together until it forms a paste. 
• Then In a small bowl, stir the mustard and ketchup together. Set it aside for now.
• To the paste, add the ground turkey, hamburger seasoning, salt, pepper, onion powder, granulated garlic, Worcestershire sauce, grated parmesan, eggs, ½ of the ketchup mustard mixture, and shredded sharp cheddar cheese.
• Use your hands to mix all the ingredients until evenly distributed. You don’t want to overmix because that can result in a tough meatloaf.
• Next, place the meat mixture onto a 7 x11 or 9 x 11 baking dish sprayed with cooking spray and form it into a loaf.
• For the glaze, spread the rest of the remaining ketchup mixture on top of the loaf, then lay the bacon slices over it, tucking it underneath if needed.
• Place meatloaf into the oven and cook for 55 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.
• Turn the oven to broil and broil the meatloaf for 3-5 minutes or until the bacon gets crispy. Keep an eye on it during this time because it can go from crisp to burnt quickly.
• Remove meatloaf from the oven and let it sit for about 5 minutes, slice, and serve.

Storage Tips

As I said earlier, meatloaf is one of my favorite recipes to make ahead of time. There are so many storage options and also because it reheats so well.

To meal prep for the week.

Either assemble the meatloaf night before to cook the next day. Or keep it in the refrigerator for up to 2 days and then continue with cooking instructions when you’re ready to make it. You’ll probably want to add more cooking time if the meatloaf is very cold. 

Or cook the meatloaf thoroughly, cut it into slices, and refrigerate in an airtight container for the week. I do like to create a portioned meal prep bowl with a piece of meatloaf, veggie, and rice to eat during the week. This is my favorite way to store leftovers.

You can warm up cooked meatloaf in the microwave for 1-2 minutes or until hot.

You can also freeze meatloaf raw or cooked. Here are my instructions for freezing meatloaf.