Meatballs

People always ask me for a meatball recipe. Its always been one of those things that instantly warms the soul. No matter what kind of house hold you grew up in, meatballs were on the table. To this day, my mother still makes the best meatballs and sauce and there’s not a drop of Italian in her blood. She passed down the meatball making skills to me and I’ve tweaked things since then.

For one, I love cheese. Stinky cheese, sharp cheese, soft cheese. I love it all. There is cheese in just about everything I make and my friends never complain. The only person I know that doesn’t like cheese is my father but he always tries what I make so I can’t complain. I add grated Parmesan to my meatballs. It keeps them moist and adds an extra layer of flavor that seasoning can’t.

Seasoning meatballs is always a hit or miss but I have a little trick to make sure they come out tasting just right. I use a ground meat that has little fat so that the meatballs can form without being greasy. When you are forming your meatballs, leave a little extra to cook in a pan. You only need a quarter size to test the taste. You can adjust seasonings once you figure out what you need. You can also pan fry them and then pop them in a crockpot to cook all day while you’re busy with life.

Forming the balls is also very important. They have to be the same size to make your life easier. They have to cook evenly and the only way they will do that is if you make them the same size. That’s the last and most important step!

Ingredients: for 5-7 servings

1 1/2 lbs of ground beef (or a beef and pork mixture)
3/4 cup of Italian breadcrumbs
2/3 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg
1 medium yellow onion grated into mix
3 garlic cloves minced
1.5 tsp each of salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder and mixed Italian seasoning

In a large bowl, mix all of your ingredients.
Form into EQUALLY sized balls and cook in a large skillet with a tsp of olive oil. This step requires lots of attention. Depending on your desired size, cooking may go fast or a little slow but just be patient and cook until the outsides are browned.
Once fully cooked, transfer your meatballs to a pot of your favorite pasta sauce and let simmer or 30mins-1 hour. Serve with your favorite pasta and enjoy