My mini turkey meatloaf with sweet potatoes offers a lighter meat and potatoes option for an easy weeknight dinner. Just a little over 30 minutes and a few basic ingredients, and you've got a simple meal the whole family will love!
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Why You'll Love Turkey Meatloaf Muffins:
Remember my mini meatloaf and potatoes dinner that you guys went crazy over? Well, I figured I should make a lightened-up version of it for those who aren't into beef and white potatoes or just want a fun and different variation!
So, I've taken my favorite meatloaf recipe and turned it into a lighter 30-minute meal. I updated the seasonings a bit to make sure it's full of great flavor since there's not as much fat in ground turkey. And then I topped it with tender sweet potatoes for lighter and delicious turkey meatloaf muffins.
They came out so well! Here's what I love most about meatloaf muffins:
- So easy to make
- Simple ingredients
- Family-friendly
- Perfect for busy weeknights
- All you need is an extra veggie and dinner is served!
Ingredient Information And Substitutions
- Ground Turkey- The best option for turkey meatloaf on with a bit more fat content in the ground turkey. A bit of fat will keep everything moist and flavorful — my store only has 94% lean (the other is 99% which is not preferable) but even 90% or 85% work.
- Sauces- Like most meatloaf recipes, Worcestershire and ketchup are needed here! Both add extra flavor and moisture.
- Cheese- I usually use Parmesan or Romano cheese.
- Breadcrumbs- Seasoned is best for great flavor.
- Egg- To bind everything together.
- Sweet Potatoes- Peel and slice them thin before you get started!
- Seasonings- For the meatloaf itself, grab some garlic powder, kosher salt, and ground black pepper. For the potatoes, I seasoned them with salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, and thyme. Feel free to change them up to your taste.
How To Make Turkey Mini Meatloaf Muffins
Step 1- Make the meatloaf
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F and grease a muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray.
Add the ground turkey, sauces, cheese, breadcrumbs, egg, salt, pepper, and garlic powder to a large bowl and mix until combined. Divide the mixture evenly between each muffin cup.
Step 3- Prepare the sweet potatoes.
Place the potato slices in a large bowl and toss with olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, and thyme. Place about 4-5 slices on top of each muffin cup.
Step 4-Bake.
Cover the muffin tin with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake uncovered for 6-8 more minutes. Turn on the broiler and broil for 2-3 minutes to brown the sweet potatoes.
Let your sweet potato turkey meatloaf cups cool for about 5 minutes before serving, and enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
I'm not a nutritionist or medical professional, but this recipe is definitely a lighter version of a family favorite.
You can use a meat thermometer to check for doneness. Once it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F and is no longer pink, it's ready.
As mentioned, turkey is a drier meat compared to beef. But, there are a few ways you can keep it moist! First, don't overwork the meat — mix the meatloaf ingredients until just combined for the best results. Don't skip that added egg either. It binds everything together and adds moisture. Also, if you find that the raw meat mixture feels dry, you can always add a tablespoon or two of warm water to the meat mixture. Just be sure you don't go overboard, or it will be soggy.
Once it's cooked, it will keep for around 3-4 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
I like to reheat it covered in the oven with a tiny bit of water in the bottom of the pan. You can also reheat individual portions in the microwave — cover it lightly with a damp paper towel to keep it moist.
Yes, you have two options: freeze your turkey mini meatloaf once cooked, or flash-freeze them uncooked. For the latter, form 12 even portions of the meat and freeze on a parchment-lined sheet pan. Once frozen, transfer to a plastic zipper bag and thaw when you're ready to bake. If you went with the first option, let them thaw in the fridge overnight before gently reheating as instructed above.
Tips For Making Turkey Meatloaf Muffins
- The best way to prevent these from sticking is to use a non-stick muffin pan and spray it well with non-stick cooking spray.
- Once all the ingredients are combined, smell the mixture. Although this sounds strange, it should smell flavorful. If it doesn’t, add more of the seasonings. This is especially important because you're using ground turkey, which has a lower fat content than beef and is therefore less flavor.
- Be sure to slice the potatoes super thin as if you were slicing them for scalloped potatoes. This will ensure that they cook through. A mandoline is super helpful for this.
- I cover these for the first 20 minutes of baking to make sure that the potatoes cook through. Then, I'll remove the foil and bake again before blasting the mini turkey meatloaf muffins under the broiler for 2-3 minutes. I find this gives them the best color!
- Cool them for 5 minutes, then use a butter knife to cut around the edge of each muffin and around the bottom to carefully remove each one. They do stick a little, so be careful.
- Ingredients to prep ahead- You can wash, peel, and slice the sweet potatoes in advance if you want to get ahead.
- Leftovers and storage- As mentioned, these will keep for 3-4 days covered in the fridge. Reheat gently as instructed above — go easy as these will dry out very easily if heated too quickly.
What To Serve With Mini Turkey Meatloaves
You already have the protein and carb piece of your meal taken care of with these turkey meatloaf muffins. All you really need to round everything out is a veggie and dessert option. I love peas with onions and easy garlic green beans, or a fresh strawberry salad.
For dessert, try my Grandma's best banana cake or a quick and easy chocolate pudding cake!
Other Delicious Meatloaf Recipes To Try
Love this recipe? Please leave a 5 star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in the recipe card below ⬇️ and/or a review in the comment section further down. Check out my Amazon Store for all my favorite tools, including those used in this recipe. And follow @thelifejolie on Instagram and TikTok!
Mini Turkey Meatloaf Muffins
Ingredients
Meatloaf
- Cooking spray
- 1 pound ground turkey
- ¾ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 3 Tablespoons tomato ketchup
- ½ cup Romano or Parmesan cheese
- ⅓ cup seasoned breadcrumbs
- 1 large egg
- Warm water (optional- this is only necessary if your mixture feels to dry- start with a little if you need it)
Potatoes
- 2 medium sweet potatoes peeled and sliced thin
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and spray a 12 cup non-stick muffin time with cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix all meatloaf ingredients until combined. Be sure you don't over work the meat. If it feels dry add a little warm water. If it feels too wet add a little more bread crumbs.
- Divide the meat between each muffin cup and press into the tin to evenly cover it (it should come up right around half way).
- Place the potato slices in a large bowl. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika and thyme. Toss until each slice is evenly coated.
- Place about 4-5 slices onto the tops of the meatloaf in the muffin pan.
- Cover and bake for 20 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the oven and uncover.
- Return the pan to the oven un covered for an additional 6-8 minutes and then turn the broiler onto high without moving the pan. Broil for 2-3 minutes to slightly brown the potatoes. Remove from the oven.
- Let them cool for 5 minutes. Use a butter knife to cut around the outside where each meatloaf meets the sides of the muffin tin to keep it from sticking and around the bottom of the meatloaf muffins to carefully remove them from the tin (they do stick a bit so do this carefully). Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- The best way to prevent these from sticking is to use a non-stick muffin pan and spray it well with non-stick cooking spray.
- Once all the ingredients are combined, smell the mixture. Although this sounds strange, it should smell flavorful. If it doesn’t, add more of the seasonings. This is especially important because you're using ground turkey, which has a lower fat content than beef and is therefore less flavor.
- Be sure to slice the potatoes super thin as if you were slicing them for scalloped potatoes. This will ensure that they cook through. A mandoline is super helpful for this.
- I cover these for the first 20 minutes of baking to make sure that the potatoes cook through. Then, I'll remove the foil and bake again before blasting the mini turkey meatloaf muffins under the broiler for 2-3 minutes. I find this gives them the best color!
- Cool them for 5 minutes, then use a butter knife to cut around the edge of each muffin and around the bottom to carefully remove each one. They do stick a little, so be careful.
- Ingredients to prep ahead- You can wash, peel, and slice the sweet potatoes in advance if you want to get ahead.
- Leftovers and storage- As mentioned, these will keep for 3-4 days covered in the fridge. Reheat gently as instructed above — go easy as these will dry out very easily if heated too quickly.
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