Bbbbbbrrrrrr!!!! It’s been downright CHILLY here lately! Which, of course, got me thinking….chili. It’s not quite “pot of chili time” yet, so after finding a sole can of Hunt’s Dinner Starters Seasoned Tomatoes for Chili, I decided to think of a unique way to stretch it out, and come up with a fun way to use it! 😀 

My hubby had been hinting, and not so subtly, about wanting meatloaf, but I just wasn’t in the mood for that – – or was I? 😉

I decided to go with it, but rock it out instead. 😉 And I’m so glad I did!! 😀  

This is the can that started me thinking! 

 

 

I had no idea of what the sauce was actually going to look or taste like, but I figured that there’s only one way to find out and cross that bridge when I got there. I was VERY pleasantly surprised at how rich, thick and chunky it was! I was NOT expecting it to look like this at all. Like most canned chili sauces I have had, I was preparing myself for it to be more like a plain tomato sauce and probably runny with no flavor. It was thankfully just the opposite!! I could EASILY see this being used as a quickie-chili on winter days when you just need something simple and easy, especially when cold and flu season strikes! 

 

 

I needed a binder for my meatloaf, and keeping with the theme had me finally using up some bags of chips from the pantry! I used Fritos Chili-Cheese flavored, but you could use Doritos or even barbecued for a different route if you’d like. Just use whatever you personally enjoy.

 

 

The finely crushed corn chips worked wonderfully as a binder, and I had a lot of fun adding a few extras to make a super delicious and party-style meatloaf! Definitely took the blahs out of meatloaf, that’s for sure! 😉  

 

 

I decided to do a spiral, rolled meatlof instead of just plain regular, I mean, if I’ve come this far I might as well go for it all, right? 

 

 

So I topped it with a HEALTHY amount of cheese, foreseeing that at least part would most likely leak out during baking anyways. And yes, some did in fact. But not as much as I thought would. 😉 Just expect this. 😉  

 

 

Rolling it up is really pretty easy if you take your time and use foil to guide and help roll.  

 

 

Just make sure you seal the ends and long side REALLY well.  And smooth the cracks, too.

 

 

Then coat it with more of the chili sauce and top with some of the chunks of tomatoes!  Add a nice sprinkling of coarse ground black pepper and it’s ready to pop into the oven! Easy!!

 

 

After baking, top it with more cheese and some brightly colored pepper rings if you’d like!  

 

 

Bake until melted, top with some green onions, and let rest while you bake up some easy green beans using up the last of the chili sauce and cheese! 

 

 

Both dishes came out picture-perfect and tasted phenomenal!  

 

 

We had a third dish with this, but that one I’ll post separately. 😉 But these two really came out delicious, and all stemming from one little can! Now THAT’S what I call a can, a pan and a plan!! 😀 😉 The meatloaf was a cross between tasting like chili and tacos, and the green beans were just plain awesome!! So if you’re hankering for meatloaf but want something a little bit more fun, this one ought to do it! 😉 And the kiddos will will really enjoy this, too! 😉

Hope you’re enjoying the start of the fall season! Have a wonderful day and I’ll see you all next week! 😀 ~Kelly   

 

 

Yield: about 6-8 servings

Spiral Chili-Cheese Meatloaf (*plus Chili-Cheese Green Beans)

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Ingredients

• 2 extra-large eggs lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup Hunt's Dinner Starters Seasoned Tomato Sauce for Chili (from a 15 oz. can, reserve rest)
• 1 Tbl. finely chopped red or green bell peppers, can sub jalapeños for extra heat
• 1 Tbl. chopped chipotles in adobo sauce, more for extra heat
• 1 tsp. dark chili powder
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. garlic salt
• 1/4 tsp. coarse ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
• 3 (1 oz.) bags Fritos Chili Cheese Corn Chips, finely crushed
• 1 (2 - 2.25 lb.) pkg. 93% lean quality ground beef, I used Walmart's
• 1 (8 oz.) bag Kraft Mexican Four Cheese blend shredded cheese
• 1/2 cup more Hunt's Sauce for Chili
• 1/4 - 1/2 tsp. coarse ground black pepper

For Topping:

• 1 - 1 1/2 cups more (most of a[i] second[/i] 8 oz. bag) Kraft Mexican Four Blend Shredded Cheese
• 1 red Sweet Carmen or Cubanelle pepper, sliced into rings, (*can sub any pepper desired, sweet or hot)
• 1 large green onion or 2-3 fresh chives, snipped at an angle
• *sour cream and guacamole when serving if desired

For Chili-Cheese Green Beans:

• 2 (15 oz.) cans green beans, drained well
• rest of Hunt's Chili Starter Sauce
• 2 tsp. dark brown sugar
• rest of second bag of cheese
• whole or chopped flat leaf parsley for garnish if desired

Instructions

In large mixing bowl, whisk eggs and stir in next 9 ingredients.

Break up ground beef and add, mixing in well with a spoon first, then your hands.

Onto a large sheet of foil, press meat mixture into a 11" x 12" rectangle.

Top with the first bag, 2 cups, of cheese. From short side, slowly and carefully, roll up tightly using the foil to help roll. Seal ends and seam extremely well. Smooth any cracks and carefully place into a sprayed foil-lined 13x9 pan. (Scrunch up loaf by pressing inward with hands placed at each end if needed, and re-smooth any cracks.)

Coat outside with second 1/2 cup of sauce, sprinkle top with coarse ground black pepper to taste.

Pop into preheated 350 degree oven and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Remove from oven, turn oven up to 400 degrees, scrape out fatty drippings from bottom of pan. Top with 1- 1 1/2 cups more cheese from second bag. Top with sliced pepper rings.

Pop back into fully heated oven, and continue baking until cheese has fully melted.

Remove and top with snipped green onions or chives and let rest. (*Leave oven on and turn back down to 350 degrees.)

For Green Beans:

Into medium bowl, add two cans green beans well drained. Fold in last of Hunt's Starter Sauce for Chili (*you should have about a scant cup left), mixed with the 2 tsp. dark brown sugar. Pour into a small baking dish, top with last of second bag of cheese and pop into oven. Bake at 350 degrees, or just until cheese has melted and green beans are warmed through, about 15-20 minutes. Garnish with parsley if desired and serve with meatloaf. (*You can also heat these in the microwave if desired using 50-60% heat.)