Mediterranean Meat Loaf

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cut 1/4 cup of the roasted peppers into thin strips; reserve for the garnish. Finely chop the remaining roasted peppers. In a large bowl, combine the finely chopped roasted red peppers, bread crumbs, egg product, tomato sauce, basil, 1/4 cup snipped parsley, salt, and black pepper. Add ground beef; mix well.

Lightly pat the ground beef mixture into a 9x5x3-inch loaf pan. Bake, uncovered, for 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center of the meat loaf registers 160 degrees F (see Tip). Let stand on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Drain off any fat from meat loaf; loosen meat loaf from sides of pan. Carefully remove meat loaf from pan.

Reserve and store one-third of the meat loaf for the Spaghetti with Meat Loaf Sauce recipe (see associated recipe). Garnish remaining meat loaf with the reserved 1/4 cup roasted red peppers and additional parsley. Slice to serve.