"On top of spaghetti,
All covered with cheese,
I lost my poor meatball,
When somebody sneezed."
If I'd only known as a kid what I know as an adult, this song would've seemed much more delicious!
I love meatballs! I can't express in words how deeply I adore meatballs!
"It rolled off the table,
And on to the floor,
And then my poor meatball,
Rolled out of the door." SOMEBODY, GRAB IT!
Spaghetti & Meatballs
Meatballs:
1 lb. ground beef (I use lean ground beef)
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 minced garlic clove
1/4 cup whole milk
2 tablespoons of chopped onion
3 tablespoons of chopped bell pepper
salt & pepper to taste
Sauce:
1 can diced tomatoes (14.5 oz)
3 cans tomato sauce (8 oz.)
2 teaspoon basil pesto in jar
2 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 teaspoon sugar
add more salt & pepper to taste, if desired.
Finely chop onions & bell peppers.
Instead of using packaged bread crumbs, I had a few slices (and one lonely heel) of French bread in the fridge so I gave it new life! Ahhhhhh, the joy of food repurposing (I also had enough to freeze).
Place ground beef in bowl with chopped onions, bell peppers, bread crumbs, milk, salt, and pepper. Combine (I use my freshly washed and sanitized little fingers but a spoon is okay too).
When meat mixture is well combined, start rolling small portions of mixture into ping-pong-sized balls. Place on platter and continue rolling until meat mixture is gone. This part, in my opinion, is the most monotonous about meatballs. I usually try to think of my favorite one-liner from Downton Abbey that week or sing the entire intro to the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air...to myself, of course. ("Now this is a story all about how, my life got flipped turned upside down"...everybody now!)
While you're feverishly rolling balls (that sounded much more appropriate in my head), heat 3 tablespoons of butter in large skillet on medium heat. When melted, add minced garlic. After a few seconds, add your first batch of meatballs (the recipe makes about 45, you can cook them all or freeze half).
This is where the balls part ways...or stick together...you decide. There are only 2.5 people in our household so I usually only cook half the meatballs (freezing the other half).
Let the meatballs brown then flip to other side.
While meatballs are cooking, combine sauce ingredients in mixing bowl. You'll add sauce to skillet (of yummy melted butter) when meatballs are done cooking. If you're freezing half the meatballs, you'll only add half the sauce mixture (freezing the other half).
When both sides of meatballs are brown, I usually stir them around for a few minutes to ensure all sides are cooked evenly. Remove and set on platter lined with paper towels (to soak up all the excess butter...yum...I've never wanted to be a paper towel until today!).
If you're freezing, only add half the sauce and half the meatballs back in the skillet. If you're going all in and feeding a house full of hungry kiddos, combine all meatballs and sauce in the skillet. Let simmer on low heat for 15-20 minutes.
While they are simmering, boil spaghetti noodles in pot. I use half a box of whole wheat spaghetti for this recipe but you can adjust quantity to your liking (and use whatever kind of pasta floats your culinary boat).
When noodles and meatballs are done, combine in bowl and serve. I top mine with fresh chopped parsley and grated parmesan...delicioso!
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| (Warning: Meatball covered shirt, if not removed carefully, will result in meatball cowlick!) |
The rest of the story...
"It rolled in the garden,
And under a bush,And then my poor meatball,
Was nothing but mush." TRAGIC!
"The mush was as tasty
As tasty could be,
And then the next summer,
It grew into a tree." WHO KNEW?!
"The tree was all covered,
All covered with moss,
And on it grew meatballs,
And tomato sauce.
So if you eat spaghetti,
All covered with cheese,
Hold on to your meatball,
Whenever you sneeze."
Remember those meatballs you froze? Stay tuned for tomorrow's recipe, day #2 of The Meatball Trifecta!
Love the meatball cowlick!
ReplyDeleteMe too!
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