My Sunday Meatballs Food

MOM'S BEST SUNDAY MEATBALLS

Steps:

• In a large bowl. Soak a loaf of Italian bread for about 3 minutes.
• Remove bread from the water. Remove the crust and discard, leaving only the inside dough.
• Use your hands and squeeze all liquid from the bread. Transfer bread to a large bowl.
• Combine bread with ground beef, eggs, cheese, garlic powder, pepper, and parsley.
• Mix with your hands to combine well, or use your food processor. Using a spoon to mix will not work. The mixture will be very sticky. Best to wash your hands before shaping them into meatballs.
• Scoop a small amount of meat mixture into your hand and roll into 2-inch balls. Transfer each meatball onto a sheet of wax paper. Set them aside.
• On the stovetop, using a deep medium-size skillet, pour oil.
• Heat oil on medium heat. When the oil is hot, carefully add a few meatballs and fry until the bottom is crispy brown. Gently turn meatballs over once and continue until crispy brown.
• Remove meatballs from the pan and drain onto a platter lined with paper towels.
• Repeat until all meatballs are fully cooked.
• Eat them alone, fried or place them into your Tomato Sauce and simmer for about 30 minutes to one hour. Using a spoon, gently remove the meatballs, transfer them onto a platter and serve.
• Yields: about 20 meatballs
• In a large heavy-bottomed pot, add the olive oil, onions, red pepper flakes, and basil, and simmer on medium-low heat for about 10 minutes.
• Then add only one can of tomatoes (blended) to the onions to prevent the onions from burning while cooking. (This is a trick my husband learned from his mom). Occasionally stirring. Continue to simmer the onions on low heat for another 15 minutes.
• Then add in the rest of the tomatoes and salt. Cover and raise the heat to bring to the sauce a boil. Lower the heat again, and continue to simmer the sauce on low heat.
• Add the meatballs to the sauce. Simmer for an additional hour, occasionally stirring the sauce. The total cooking time should be about 1 and ½ hours. Taste the sauce. Turn off the heat. Allow the sauce to cool down slightly.
• Yields: 3 quarts

OLD STYLE SUNDAY MEATBALLS

Steps:

• In a large mixing bowl, mix all ingredients except cheese and breadcrumbs (this is best done with clean hands!).
• Once mixed, add cheese and breadcrumbs, mix until even.
• Coat a roasting pan or high sided pan with extra virgin olive oil.
• Roll meat mixture into balls about the size of a golfball and line oiled pan with them.
• Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until done.

SUNDAY MEATBALLS

Steps:

• Place frozen meatballs in crock-pot.
• In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, bring remaining ingredients to a boil until sugar has dissolved. Pour mixture over meatballs and give a quick stir to coat meatballs.
• Cook on high for 2-3 hours or low for 6-8 hours.

EXCELLENT MEATBALLS

Steps:

• Coat a large saute pan with olive oil, add the onions and bring to a medium-high heat. Season the onions generously with salt and cook for about 5 to 7 minutes. The onions should be very soft and aromatic but have no color. Add the garlic and the crushed red pepper and saute for another 1 to 2 minutes. Turn off heat and allow to cool.
• In a large bowl combine the meats, eggs, Parmigiano, parsley and bread crumbs. It works well to squish the mixture with your hands. Add the onion mixture and season generously with salt and squish some more. Add the water and do 1 final really good squish. The mixture should be quite wet. Test the seasoning of the mix by making a mini hamburger size patty and cooking it. The mixture should taste really good! If it doesn't it is probably missing salt. Add more. Add more anyway.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Shape the meat into desired size. Some people like 'em big some people like 'em small. I prefer meatballs slightly larger than a golf ball. Coat a large saute pan with olive oil and bring to a medium-high heat. Brown the meatballs on all sides. Place them on a cookie sheet and bake them in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked all the way through. If using right away, add them to your big pot of marinara sauce. If not using right away, they can be frozen for later use. Serve with pasta and sauce or just eat them straight out of the pot! YUM!
• Coat a large saucepot with olive oil and add the pancetta. Bring the pot to a medium-high heat and cook the pancetta for 4 to 5 minutes. Add the onions, season generously with salt and stir to coat with olive oil. Cook the onions for 6 to 7 minutes stirring frequently. The onions should become very soft and aromatic but have no color. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes stirring frequently.
• Pass the tomatoes through the food mill. Be sure to pass all of the pulp through the holes leaving only the stems and the seeds, and be sure to scrape the pulp off of the bottom of the food mill. That's all of the big money stuff! Add the tomatoes to the pot and rinse out 1 of the empty tomato cans with water and add that water to the pot (about 2 to 3 cups). Season generously with salt and TASTE IT!!!! Tomatoes take a lot of salt. Season in baby steps and taste every step of the way. Cook the sauce for 2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally and tasting frequently.
• Use the sauce right away on pasta or for any other tomato sauce need. This sauce can also be cooled and stored in the refrigerator for a few days and freezes really well.
• Yield: 2 quarts

SUNDAY SAUCE WITH MEATBALLS

Steps:

• Strain the plum tomatoes in a colander to extract the juice, breaking the tomatoes apart with your hands. Discard the pulp and set aside.
• Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add 4 cloves garlic, the onion, red pepper and black pepper. Saute until the onion is soft and beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add juiced tomatoes, red wine, Parmesan and salt. Add the tomato paste and the water and stir together over medium heat. *Cook's Note: Tomato paste should be added after making meatballs and ribs.
• Put the ground meat in a mixing bowl. Beat the eggs and add them to the meat along with 6 cloves garlic, the bread crumbs, salt, pepper, Parmesan and milk. Mix this all together with your hands. Wet your hands with water and continue to wet them as you pinch meat from the bowl and roll into 2-inch balls. Roll the balls in the flour.
• Heat 1/2-cup of oil in a large skillet. Add 3 cloves chopped garlic and saute until golden brown. Remove the garlic with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add the meatballs and saute over medium-high heat, turning them until they are brown all over.
• *Cook's Note: As soon as you can pick them up with a fork, they are ready. You don't want them to be well done. If the meatball slides off the fork when you pick it up, it needs to cook a little longer.
• Cut the ribs apart and remove the membrane. Saute them in 1/2-cup oil until very brown and remove.
• Return the garlic to the oil and add tomato paste (for the sauce) to the pan; Cook, stirring, over medium heat for about 3 minutes until it softens. Remove from the heat and add to the sauce.
• Add the meatballs and spareribs to the sauce. Bring to an easy boil, then simmer over low heat for 2 hours. Add the basil and simmer for 15 minutes more. The spareribs should be very tender, falling off the bone and the meatballs should float in the sauce

MEATBALLS IN SUNDAY SAUCE

Steps:

• For the meatballs: In a bowl, combine the beef, pork, veal, breadcrumbs, Parmesan and parsley. In a separate bowl, combine the ricotta and eggs and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Whip with a whisk until fluffy.
• Fold the ricotta mixture into the meat mixture. Form the mixture into golf-size balls. Pour about 2 inches of canola oil into a frying pan and slowly bring the temperature to 350 degrees F. Line a plate with paper towels and set aside. Fry the meatballs until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to the lined plate.
• For the sauce: Coat the bottom of a large saucepan with olive oil and heat over medium heat. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until the garlic is lightly brown, 30 seconds.
• Deglaze with the marsala, then add the stock and cook, stirring, until reduced by half. Add the tomatoes and sugar and bring to a simmer. Add the meatballs and cook, 30 minutes. Add the basil.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and add the penne. Cook to al dente, about 13 minutes.
• Add the strained penne to a large saute pan and ladle in some of the sauce, then cook over high heat just long enough to coat the pasta and simmer the sauce. Lower the heat and add the grated Parmesan. Toss in the pan to coat well. Serve with immediately with meatballs.