Meatloaf & Mashed Potato Cupcakes

August 20th, 2012 | Cakes & Cupcakes, Carbs, Family Dinner, Kid's Table | 0 Comments

I've been wanting to make these "cupcakes" for so long for sooo many reasons:

1) They are genius for trying to get finicky kids to try something new.
2) They do a fine job of dressing up an otherwise boring old meatloaf.
3) They are great for on-the-go eaters like dads or kids running out the door for softball or hockey practice in the evening.
4) They are so versatile; make them using beef, pork, turkey, chicken or any other ground meat you choose desire.
5) You can choose purple potatoes for purple frosting, yams for orange frosting or puree a roasted beet and add to white potatoes for a bright pink hue.
6) They are perfect party fare for little ones. Have you ever tried to get 8-10 kids to stop playing and sit down for dinner while hosting a dinner party? If not, I'm here to tell you it is NOT easy.
7) Their shock value and cuteness are unparalleled.
8) Aren't reasons 1-7 enough? Get to cookin'!

I used ground pork and purple potatoes this time, but once my kids get used to them I think I'll try using white potatoes with pureed peas {green frosting!} to really complete the classic meatloaf dinner I grew up with.

Ingredients:

For the meatloaves:
1 lb ground pork
1/2 cup steel-cut oats
1 small carrot
1/2 small white onion
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

For the mashed potato frosting:
3 small purple potatoes
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup cream
1 1/2 teaspoons salt, divided

Directions:

Preheat oven to Convection Bake at 375 degrees {bake at 375 if your oven does not have that feature}.

Place oats into a food processor and pulse until grainy.

Grate carrot and onion, reserving any onion juices to put into the meatloaf.

In a large bowl, mix together pork, oats, carrot, onion, egg, garlic powder, salt and pepper until incorporated.

Line a regular sized cupcake pan with foil liners and lightly spray with cooking spray. Fill each liner up until almost full with meatloaf mixture. Bake for about 30 minutes, until tops are golden brown.

While meatloaves are baking, prepare mashed potato frosting. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Peel potatoes and cut into 1-inch chunks. Once water is boiling, add 1 teaspoon of salt and the potatoes. Cook potatoes for about 15-18 minutes, until fork tender. Drain potatoes in a colander and transfer to a large bowl. Add butter, cream and remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Using a hand mixer, whip potatoes until smooth and creamy. Transfer whipped potatoes to a piping bag fitted with a wide star-like tip (# 32).

Once cupcakes are done, remove from oven and allow to cool for about 5 minutes in the pan. It is easier if you remove the meatloaves from the cupcake tin before frosting with whipped potatoes {I only know this because I made the mistake of frosting them while they were still in the tin and it made it difficult to remove them and keep the frosting pretty. Duh.}

Serve while still warm.... and just try not to smile when you tell your family they're having cupcakes for dinner.