MEATBALLS.
Balls of meat, and bread, and a bunch of other stuff. Served up with tomato sauce, spaghet, and parm chee…just too good.
You can’t make just one, well I guess you could, but it would be a lot of work for one meatball…so get ready to assemble! Once everything is together it goes pretty quickly!
We made them for our friends up in Vermont. It’s just the best dinner when it’s snowing outside and you’re tired from running around in the snow all day.
And G bread. Don’t forget about that garlicky goodness…
Start off with your bread. Dried out white sandwich bread cut into cubes is the best. If you don’t have time to dry them, just put them in the oven at 250 degrees for about 40 minutes. You can buy bread crumbs, but bread cubes are better! They absorb all of the goodness!
Add milk to the bread crumbs.
Let it soak in for a little bit, then add all of your seasonings. I like to do basil and oregano. Adding fresh parsley and basil is always a good idea too!
Now add the eggies.
Now, the pecorino. When you’re making a double batch, you need a whole container. It’s what gives these meaty babies their goodness.
Mix it up as you go. Then add your meat. I like to use ground pork, ITALIAN SAUSAGE, and ground beef. The sausage gives the meatballs really great flavor with minimal work. Just buy it bulk or take it out of the casings.
I also added the onions and garlic. Throw them in the food processor to get them nice and finely minced, so they will be evenly dispersed in the meatballs!
MIX IT UP!
Get messy!
Add a little salt and some pepper. The pecorino cheese is plenty of saltiness!
Grease a baking pan lined with aluminum foil.
Roll them into nice golf ball sized balls.
Bake them at 350 for about 30-40 minutes, until they are nice and golden brown.
It was gettin’ real dark and we were hungry…..so picture’s a little fuzzy š
While the meatballs are bakin’, get the spaghetti sauce going! You can use jarred of course, but if you have time, fresh is worth it!
Start by chopping onions and garlic. Heat olive oil in a large pot and add the onions and garlic. Add a little salt and cook for about 5 minutes until soft and slightly browned.
Add oregano and basil to the pan, as well as, the tomatoes. I love using POMI sauce. It’s only tomatoes, no preservatives, no salt, and it’s not in a can! They also make diced tomatoes, and puree. I also added a container of tomato paste.
Add salt. And I cheat and add sugar. I like it sweet.
Finito!
- Meatballs
- 2 cups dried white bread cubes
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1 Tablespoon basil
- 1 Tablespoon oregano
- 4 oz. Pecorino Romano grated cheese
- 1 egg
- 1/4 lb. ground pork
- 1/4 lb. ground beef
- 1/4 lb. sweet or hot italian sausage
- 1 onion
- 3-4 cloves of garlic
- salt and pepper
- Tomato Sauce
- 1 onion
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 35 ounces of tomato sauce or puree
- 1 small can of tomato paste
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/8 cup sugar
- splash of wine
- 1. Soak bread crumbs in milk for five minutes in a large bowl.
- 2. Add basil, oregano, and pecorino cheese. Gently mix together.
- 3. Add egg to the mixture.
- 4. Add the ground meat.
- 5. Finely chop the onion and garlic together. You can do this in a food processor to get the finest mince.
- 6. Add the onion/garlic mixture to the meat mixture.
- 7. Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- 8. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Grease the foil.
- 9. Roll meatball mixture into golf ball sized balls. Place them fairly close together on the baking sheet, it is ok if they touch.
- 10. Bake for 30-40 minutes until golden brown.
- 1. Saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil in a large saucepan.
- 2. Add salt, tomato sauce, tomato paste, spices, and sugar.
- 3. Cook on low for about thirty minutes, or longer.
- 4. Toss in a splash of red wine. Serve over pasta and top with cheese!!!!!!
I'm a country girl at heart. I tried living in the city and it just didn't work. Welcome to my ramblings as a teacher and wife. 
Leave a Reply