Thanksgiving Turkey Meatloaf Recipe (2024)

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This Thanksgiving Turkey Meatloaf Recipe is a healthy substitute to a traditional meatloaf recipe! If you don’t want to cook a full bird, this is a great alternative for Thanksgiving this year. Top it off with some turkey gravy and serve with my Crockpot Mashed Potatoes! A delicious meal that won’t leave you in the kitchen for hours, but will taste as if you did. It’s THAT good!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe!

Thanksgiving Turkey Meatloaf is a convenient and delicious option for a tasty meal in the days before, on, or following Thanksgiving. For those looking for a leaner protein source compared to a classic meatloaf recipe made with red meat like ground beef, this is a great healthier alternative. Ground turkey is lower in fat than most meats. I like to buy the 99% fat-free ground turkey for this recipe. You’ll love that Turkey Meatloaf is easy to prepare and will fit nicely into your busy holiday cooking schedule. It can be shaped, seasoned, and baked with ease, freeing up time for other Thanksgiving dishes.

Main Ingredients Needed

A moist turkey meatloaf recipe with all the same flavors as Thanksgiving put together in fraction of the time. It’s a simple recipe and you likely already have most of the ingredients in your pantry. Here is what you’ll need to make this recipe:

• Butter –this is used to sauté the vegetables.
• Onion and Celery –for flavor and texture.
• Lean Ground Turkey –I used 99% fat-free ground turkey for this recipe.
• Egg – this helps hold the meat together.
• Plain Breadcrumbs – you can use regular or panko breadcrumbs. Italian breadcrumbs would also be really delicious with this recipe.
• Poultry Seasoning –this is to give it that classic Thanksgiving flavor.
• Cinnamon –this gives the loaf a hint of warm spice.
• Dried Thyme Leaves –earthy and aromatic.
• Parsley Flakes –this is for a garnish.
• Honey –a slightly sweet flavor that balances well with all the savory.
• Chopped Pecans –adds nuttiness (obviously) and nice texture.
• Turkey Gravy –you can use store-bought or make your own homemade turkey gravy.

For the meatloaf lovers out there…Try these other recipes:Simple Sunday Meatloaf Recipe andTurkey Meatloaf Florentine Recipe.

How to Make Turkey Meatloaf

This is a super easy and healthy turkey meatloaf recipe. Simply sauté the veggies, then mix with everything else and bake. The result is a moist and flavorful dinner! For full recipe details, including ingredients and measurements, see the printable recipe card below. Here is step by step what you can expect when making this recipe:

Preheat Oven + Prep Baking Sheet

Preheat oven to 375° F. Line a small sheet pan (or loaf pan) with aluminum foil or parchment paper and spray with nonstick spray. Set aside.

Sauté the Onions + Celery

In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Sauté onion and celery until tender.

Combine Remaining Ingredients, hen Add Sautéed Veggies, Forming a Loaf

While veggies are cooking, combine remaining ingredients (ground turkey, egg, bread crumbs, salt + pepper, poultry seasoning, cinnamon, dried thyme, dried parsley, honey and chopped pecans) into a large bowl. Add in the sautéed onion mixture and stir to incorporate everything together.

Pro Tip: To make this recipe faster, divide the turkey mixture into foursmaller loaf pansand bake for 20-30 minutes. Or you can even use yourcupcake tinto make a ton of small, cute, delicious mini meatloaves. You can also make this meat mixture into turkey meatballs using a cookie dough scoop and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Bake

Form the meat mixture into a loaf shape on the prepared sheet pan or loaf pan.

Bake 30-40 minutes or until thoroughly cooked (use an instant read thermometer and look for an internal temperature of 165° F or higher).

Cool for a couple minutes before slicing and serving. Serve with some made from scratch turkey gravy or a packet of gravy or premade jar of gravy from the grocery store.

Storing Leftovers

Allow turkey meatloaf to cool to room temperature. Store in an airtight container, in the fridge for up to 4 daysand is great as leftovers. Reheat pieces in the microwave in 30 second intervals until heated to your liking.

FAQ About Thanksgiving Turkey Meatloaf

Turkey Meatloaf Sides

• Mashed Potatoes
• Roasted Green Beans
• Mashed Sweet Potatoes
• Roasted Brussels Sprouts
• See 20+ more Turkey Meatloaf Sides

More Delicious Turkey Recipes to Try!

Be sure to check out all of my turkey recipes here, but below are a couple of my favorites.

• Perfect Roast Turkey
• Healthy Turkey Salisbury Steak Recipe
• Turkey Taco Meat Recipe
• The Best Turkey Burgers Recipe
• Smoked Turkey

This truly is the best turkey meatloaf recipe! It’s one that the whole family will love and who doesn’t love a little bit of comfort food during the holidays? It’s a simple healthy meal and has all the best flavors of Thanksgiving dinner. The printable recipe card is below. Have a lovely day, friends!

If you make this recipe, I would really appreciate it if you wouldgive it a star rating and leave your review in the comments! If you have a picture of your finished dish, post it on Instagram using the hashtag #laurenslatest and tagging me @laurens_latest.