Vegetable Meatloaf

I make meatloaf once a year. Why? Because I always hated meatloaf growing up. No offense Mom. Just not my thing. I made this vegetable meatloaf and will definitely be making it more often now! It was even better the next day warmed up. Great dish to make ahead and put in the oven when you get home from work or even bake a day ahead and reheat.

Ingredients:

1 red or orange bell pepper
1 small onion or 1/2 medium onion
1 small zucchini
1 c chopped spinach
2 t extra virgin olive oil

1 lb ground beef
1 egg or 1 chia egg (1T chia meal + 3T water)
1/2 c flax meal
1/8 c nutritional yeast or parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

Directions:
Finely chop first 4 ingredients. Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Cook vegetables until soft. Drain any liquid off (if any remains). In a large bowl stir together cooled vegetables with ground beef, egg, flax and nutritional yeast. Place in a loaf pan or shape into a loaf and place in a baking dish. Bake at 450 degrees for one hour or until cooked thoroughly. Let cool 5-10 minutes before slicing and serving. Goes great with buttered peas and mashed potatoes. (or in my case, just buttered peas since I can't eat potatoes).