BBQ Bacon Meatloaf

This is a Hungry Girl recipe that we had to tweek because of the sickeningly high amount of Sodium. Originally it was 707 mg per slice! Crazy huh? We don't know how much we took it down by but hopefully it was about half. Just by using low sodium bacon, tomatoes, and bbq sauce. But we're proud to say it turned out AMAZING! It's so filling and packed with smokey bbq flavor, that we don't even miss our mom's traditional recipes (sorry moms!)

Ingredients
6 slices center-cut bacon or turkey bacon (LOW SODIUM!)
1 cup chopped mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 1/4 lbs. raw extra-lean ground beef
1/2 cup canned crushed tomatoes (Low sodium)
3 tbsp. hickory-flavored BBQ sauce, divided (Low cal, carb, and sodium... look for Stubbs Hickory Bourbon)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
2 tbsp. ketchup

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a loaf pan with nonstick spray and set aside.

Bring a large skillet sprayed with nonstick spray to medium heat on the stove. Add bacon and cook until crispy, about 4 minutes per side. Remove bacon and, once cool enough to handle, chop or crumble. Set aside.

If needed, clean and dry skillet. Re-spray skillet and return to medium heat. Add mushrooms and onion. Stirring occasionally, cook until completely softened, 5 - 7 minutes. Remove from heat and, once cool enough to handle, blot away any excess moisture with paper towels.

Transfer veggies to a large bowl. Add about three-fourths of the bacon, and set the rest aside for topping. To the bowl, add beef, tomatoes, 2 tbsp. BBQ sauce, salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder. Mix thoroughly.

Transfer mixture to the loaf pan; if needed, smooth out the surface with the back of a spatula or spoon. Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine ketchup with remaining tablespoon of BBQ sauce and mix well. Evenly top meatloaf with the BBQ-ketchup mixture and sprinkle with remaining bacon.

Bake in the oven until meatloaf is fully cooked, about 50 minutes.

Slice, serve, and enjoy!

MAKES 5 SERVINGS
Serving Size: 1 slice (1/5th of recipe)
Calories: 224 | Fat: 8g | Sodium: 400 mg |Carbs: 10g | Fiber: 1g | Sugars: 7g | Protein: 26g