Spicy Cheese Stuffed Smoked Meatloaf

1. Dice the onion, celery, and bell pepper. Melt the butter in a medium sized pan over medium heat. When melted add the onion, celery, and bell pepper, and cook until soft, about 5 minutes.
2. Add in the garlic and diced habanero and cook until softened, about 3 minutes.
3. Stir in the BBQ seasoning, hot sauce, and Worcestershire sauce and stir to combine. Cook for 5 minutes.
4. Add in the ketchup and the milk and stir to combine. Heat for 2 minutes then remove the pan from the heat.
5. In a large bowl, add the ground beef and the panko breadcrumbs. When cool enough to handle, mix in the seasoned and cooked veggies. Finally add in the beaten eggs and mix well with your hands until well combined.

Forming the meatloaf

1. Place a couple sheets of plastic wrap on a cutting board or your counter. Place the meat mixture on the plastic wrap and form the meat into a large rectangle about ½ inch thick.
2. Spread the shredded cheese down the middle of the meat, leaving about a 1-inch border on the ends.
3. Use the plastic wrap to form the meat into a loaf by rolling up the loaf and then closing of the ends.
4. If desired season the outside of the meatloaf with additional BBQ seasoning.

Smoking the meatloaf

1. Preheat your grill or smoker to 250-300 degrees (use a lower temp for more smoke flavor or higher temp for less smoke flavor).
2. Place the meatloaf on the smoker and cook to an internal temperature of 160 degrees. Depending on your smoker and cooking temperature, this typically takes 2-3 hours, but monitor with a temperature probe.
3. When the smoked meatloaf is at temp, remove it to a cutting board and slice into individual servings.