Meatloaf With a Secret

From the website of the New England TV show "Phantom Gourmet".

• Ready In: 1 hr
• Serves: 8-10
• Yields: 1 loaf

Ingredients

• 2  lbs ground beef
• 1  cup  breadcrumbs (plain or Italian)
• 1  cup  red pepper, chopped (optional)
• 2  eggs, lightly beaten
• 2  tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1  tablespoon  chopped garlic
• 1  tablespoon  italian seasoning
•  salt
• 1  lb bacon
• 1  box  macaroni and cheese (prepared according to package instructions)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350.
2. Wash your hands (no kidding).
3. In a big bowl, use your hands to mix the ground beef, breadcrumbs, red peppers, eggs, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, Italian seasoning, and salt. The mixture should cling together. If it doesn’t, add a little beer or milk until it does.
4. Place strips of bacon across a loaf or baking pan the baking pan, touching each other side by side, and press against the sides. Place half of the mixture in, and press the mixture against the bottom and up the sides to create an even layer at least an inch thick around a bathtub shaped depression in the middle.
5. Fill 1/3 of that “tub” with mac and cheese, not quite to the top of the surrounding meat loaf. Top everything with an inch thick layer of meat loaf mixture. Finally, top with strips of bacon, arranged across the width of the pan. (Tip: Tuck the bacon in between the side of the loaf pan and the meat loaf mixture to prevent it curling up as the bacon cooks.).
6. Slide the meat loaf into the oven, and cook uncovered for 50 minutes, or until the interior registers 160°F At about the 25-minute mark, take out the meatloaf and carefully pour off the accumulated fat and juices, then continue cooking.
7. To serve, slice with a knife, and serve slices with ketchup alongside.
8. Variation: Use ground pork or turkey (or a mixture) in place of the ground beef.