It's not pasta sauce, but it's sauce related. Yes, here it is, my meatball recipe:
Ingredients:
1/3 lb. ground beef
1/3 lb. ground pork
1/3 lb. ground veal
1/3 c. milk
about 5 slices crusty bread, or a small baguette (preferably day-old)
2/3 c. italian breadcrumbs
5 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 c. mustard (I prefer Grey Poupon)
1/4 c. fresh parsley, finely chopped
2 T. Italian seasoning
1/2 c. grated pecorino-romano cheese
2 eggs
2 T. olive oil
*Red Tomato Sauce*
Directions:
1. Cut the bread into 1/8 inch cubes. Place it in a small bowl with the milk and press it down to absorb the liquid.
2. In a large bowl, combine the remaining ingredients and mix well. Drain 80% of the liquid from the bread cubes by squeezing them in your hand, and add them to the meat mixture. Combine again.
3. Add the olive oil to a large skillet over a medium flame. Using your palms, roll the meat into 1/3 inch diameter balls and place them into the skillet. Brown on all sides, or about 2 minutes per side.
4. To finish, simmer the cooked meatballs in a saute pan with your favorite red tomato sauce, making sure the sauce covers them so that they may absorb the flavors.
Enjoy!
mmmm those sound DELECTIBLE. haha i will try.
I made these last night and Donovan said they were one of my best batches so far. I still don't have the recipe memorized, though, I had to look on here to make sure I put all the ingredients in. I changed the recipe to 2 eggs instead of 1.
i made these last night, it's so strange, i consider myself to be a good cook, (especially w/ italian food) but this is the second time i've attempted meatballs, and they've not come out that great. i think the biggest thing is the size, i think i need to make them smaller, cuz the outside is good, then the inside seems too mushy and almost undercooked tasting.
it was funny, a friend of mine is dating a brother from italy, and i met him a couple weeks ago, and he was saying it's so gross sounding that us americans mix everything together...italians eat the pasta first, totally separate, then the meatballs as a second dish. interesting tidbit.
With the meatballs, how long do you continue cooking them in the sauce??
you could try browning them in your pan and then baking them.
you mean, baking them, not in sauce, just on a cookie sheet or something....?
I'm not sure. I'll ask my dad. All I remember is that's how he and pa (his dad) would do it.
yea, i'm gonna keep trying it until i've perfected the meatball...i feel like a disgrace to my heritage. lol
That's how my mom does them. Also, she only makes them about 1.5"-2" in diameter.
you can fry them in a pan with a little olive oil to brown them
My mother bakes them on a cookie sheet first for a while and then dumps them in the sauce.
I only cook them in the sauce for about 10 or 15 minutes. Mine are always the size of the inside of my palm, so that's not huge. And if they're a little too mushy inside, maybe you could use a little more breadcrumbs to dry them out more. If you're scared of too much spice you could use unflavored breadcrumbs or just chop a couple slices of stale bread. They should hold together pretty tightly in your hand.
yea, i cooked mine about 15 mins in the sauce. i think the size is my issue, i think mine were bigger than that.
my mom makes the best meatballs in the whole world... i think the key is she uses a lot of eggs and breadcrumbs. they are so light and fluffy and delicious
I also add chopped basil to the meatyballs. I'm going to make these this afternoon, and instead of letting them finish cooking in my regular sauce, I'm going to make a batch of fresh, simple marinara for them to hang out in. Oooh!!!
These came out really nice today. The simple marinara (just garlic, tomatoes and fresh basil) was a really sweet compliment. I also stirred all the ingredients but the meat and the bread crumbs together first this time, rather than just struggling with all that meat in a bowl; it worked really well. I then just put in the breadcrumbs and added milk from the bread-soaking bowl as needed to moisten. A little over 3 pounds of meat is a huge amount - I guess it's a good thing that as I was on the phone, Donovan snuck like 12 meatballs!
I'm going to make these today, since I'm still living the life of leisure. I forgot to get bread at the store yesterday, so now I have to go out for just one thing, which I hate.
I've discovered that mixing all the ingredients except the meat first makes it totally easier to mix. So whisk everything in with the egg and then mix that into the meat with your hands. It's much easier.
I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but it is so yummy to put cheese in the center of a meatball. A little cube of mozzarella or provelone. Mmm Mmm!
mmm, yea. That's like how you make rice balls; with the mozzarella in the center. (Which by the way are EXTREMELY time consuming) but super delish.
Arancini! Mmmm I love those things!!
i know! i miss that you can't get them at pizzarias here, like you can in NY. hmph.
bah! I'm like a 3 hour drive from NY now so I can't get them either.
Man. I had quite an awful experiance making them one time. It was the first time i did it, and had no idea how involved it was making the risotto from scratch...and we were having company over...(people that had never come over before) when they got there, the kitchen was a wreck and i was literally in tears. But man, they were good. haha
My Dad makes the best riceballs. I order them at every restaurant that has them on the menu. I haven't yet found a place that compares to my Dad's.
I love arancini! Every time I make risotto, I make extra for them. I always say to Donovan "I'm making arancini, do you want some?" and he says no, I think because he doesn't remember what they are - then he inevitably steals some of the batch I thought was just for me. :P They're so good!