I don’t know about you, but there’s nothing like the South cooling off a bit just as school starts – only to heat up again for another 3 or 4 weeks of sweltering summer. That one cooler week makes the entire family crave comfort foods like venison meatloaf. It’s a nice change of pace because meatloaf is a snap to pull together compared to our usual summer fare.

Here’s my favorite venison meatloaf recipe. This is one of the few venison dishes that actually reheats well. If you have a small family, you can easily cut this recipe in half.

Ingredients

• 2 lbs ground venison burger (I sometimes use half venison sausage for more flavor)
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 sleeve Town House crackers, crushed
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp Kosher salt
• 6 oz white cheddar cheese, grated
• 4 to 6 slices of bacon, uncooked
• 4 to 6 slices of muenster or more cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Mix the first 6 ingredients. Place ¾ of the ingredients into a loaf pan, lining the bottom and sides of the pan with the mixture and leaving a well for the cheese.
3. Fill the space with cheese, then place the remaining meat mixture on top. (I usually form a rectangle of meat on a cutting board and transfer it to the top.) Top with overlapping strips of bacon.
4. Bake for 50 minutes. Remove from oven and allow the meatloaf to rest for 15 minutes – this is important, so do not skip this step!
5. Top with cheese slices or more grated cheddar and bake for an additional 10 minutes.

*After many trials with this recipe, I have found that Muenster cheese browns up nicely and that more cheddar can be a little overpowering. In the photos here, I left off the bacon because one of the kids likes it better without, and quite frankly, I don’t need the extra calories. This venison meatloaf recipe serves 6 to 8 and leftovers reheat well.