Chipotle Cheddar-Ale Meatloaf

I have been experimenting with meatloaf a lot lately because of the amount of ground beef in my freezer. This is a version that I made with chipotle peppers and beer...now how could that be bad???

For the Meatloaf

2 lbs of ground beef
1 onion (diced)
2 cloves garlic (fine dice)
1 stalk of celery (diced)
1/2 large red pepper (diced)
1/2 cup of beer (I used ale but I am sure a stout would work well also)
2 1/2 cups of roughly chopped french bread
1 cup milk
2 eggs (beaten)
1 Jalapeño (fine dice)
2 tablespoons line zest (grated)
2 Chipotle Chiles in Adobo (diced)
1 1/2 tsp of Adobo
1/2 cup cheddar cheese (grated)
1/4 cup of cilantro (chopped)
1 tsp Ancho Chili Powder

For the Glaze
1 Tablespoon Chipotle in Adobo (diced)
2 Tablespoons Ketchup

Method:
Take out a large mixing bowl and a sautee pan. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.
Sautee the onion, garlic, celery, and red pepper in olive oil until translucent. (Approx 6-8 mins)
Pour in the beer and simmer it until the liquid has reduced by about 3/4. This will intensify the flavor of the beer. Remove from heat and set aside.

Cut the french bread into about 1/2 inch chunks and soak it in the milk in a shallow dish. Soak this for about 5 - 10 mins, turning a few times, until the bread has soaked up all of the milk. Once the milk is fully soaked into the bread, transfer the bread to a cutting board and chop the it up into a fine dice. Add the bread to the mixing bowl along with the cooled onions, garlic and red pepper.

Add in the rest of the ingredients to the bowl and mix. Make sure not to over mix the ingredients as this may make it too dense.

Form the meat into a rectangular block on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Mix the glaze in a small dish and spread it onto the top of the meatloaf using a spatula.

Place the loaf into the oven at 325 degrees for approximately 1 1/2 hours or until a thermometer reads 160 degrees. Take out to rest for at least 10 minutes and the cut into thick slices...enjoy!