31 Days At The Table: Cheese Stuffed Mini Meatloaves

Welcome to Day 11 of the 31 Days At The Table Challenge.  I hope you've been enjoying the meals so far- we're a third of the way though already (the days are just flying by for me)!  Tonight's dinner was definitely a great one.  It would be a great dish served at a potluck, a football party, or a cozy night at home in front of the tv. 

Cheese Stuffed Mini-Meatloafs

Adapted from the recipe found here.

Ingredients...
1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs
18 oz can of Progresso "Recipe Starters" Fire Roasted Tomato Cooking Sauce
1 lb lean ground beef
1 egg
1/4 cup minced onion
12 1/2inch cubes extra sharp cheddar cheese

Directions...
Preheat oven to 400*
Stir 1 c sauce and bread crumbs together.  Let stand for 5 minutes.
Chop 12 half-inch cubes extra sharp cheddar cheese and set aside.
Mix beef, egg, onion 1/2 t salt and 1/4 t pepper.  Add to bread crumb mixture.
Spray a standard 12 cup muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray.
Divide mixture evenly into muffin tin. 
Push one cube of cheese into each meatloaf. 
Place muffin on a cookie sheet before placing in the oven (will catch any grease or drips).  Bake for 30 minutes or until an instant read thermometer reads 160*
Heat remaining sauce to serve with the mini-meatloaves. 

Notes...
I made a double batch of this recipe, so we could have some leftovers.  We practically polished off the whole batch!  I was a big fan of the recipe starter sauce.  It had a nice complex flavor you don't often find in a store bought sauce.  I am looking forward to trying other recipes with the different sauces (check some of them out here). 
Make sure that you go for the leanest ground beef you can find when making this recipe.  Ground beef will render quite a bit of grease as its cooked, and since the mini-meatloaves are sitting in a metal cup there is no place for the grease to go. 
The original recipe called for using string cheese.  While it is convenient, it doesn't melt.  I'd opt for your favorite type of block cheese (yummy yummy sharp cheddar) for this recipe to send it over the top!

Enjoy-
~Lindsey