Cheese Stuffed Italian Meatloaf

I wanted to make a different sort of meatloaf for dinner last night, and this is what I came up with. This meatloaf is moist and cheesy and oh-so-delicious! Tastes pretty darn good cold, too. :) I often make a double batch and freeze one in a disposable meatloaf pan to give to bachelor friends.

• Ready In: 1 hr 10 mins
• Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

• 1  egg
• 1  cup  seasoned dry bread crumb
• 1  teaspoon  minced garlic
• 1⁄2 cup  of your favorite  pasta sauce, homemade or in the jar
• 1  cup  chopped onion
• 1⁄4 cup  chopped fresh basil
• 3⁄4 lb lean ground beef
• 1⁄2 lb hot Italian sausage
• 1  cup  cubed mozzarella cheese, in about 1/4 inch pieces
•  additional  pasta sauce, for garnish

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the egg, breadcrumbs (I whir herbed dry stuffing mix in my food processor to make these), garlic, and 1/2 cup pasta sauce until well-mixed.
3. Add remaining ingredients (except the garnish), and mix together well (I do the whole thing in my sturdy KitchenAid mixer, which works quite well).
4. Put into a large loaf pan, top/garnish with additional pasta sauce (I like a*lot* of sauce and so use about a half-cup, but three or four tablespoons would do, too), and bake at 350 degrees F for 1 hour.
5. Serve with rice, spaghetti, or scalloped potatoes.