Tuesday, July 06, 2010

Friday, July 02, 2010

Spaghetti and Meatballs

I found this recipe in the "Buca di Beppo" cookbook; it has such a nice fresh spin on old Spaghetti and Meatballs and easy too! It has loads of garlic in it too mmmm - trust me you'll love it!



Meatballs:
2 1/2 pounds ground beef
1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano Cheese
3/4 cup dry Italian style bread crumbs
4 large eggs
1/4 cup chopped garlic
2 teaspoons salt

In a large bowl, combine ground beef, Romano cheese, bread crumbs, eggs, garlic and salt; mix well. Shape into meatballs the size of golf balls. Makes about 40 meatballs. Cover and refrigerate for approx 1 hour.

Sauce:
6 garlic cloves, sliced thinly
1 large onion, diced into 1/4 inch pieces
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 (28-oz) cans plum tomatoes with juice
salt and pepper to taste

In a large pan sauté over medium heat the garlic, onion, celery and carrot in the olive oil until translucent. Add the parsley. Break up the tomatoes with your hands and add, with all of the tomato juice, to the pan. Add salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and add the meatballs. Be prepared: sauce will significantly increase in volume, but then it will reduce back by one-third by the end of the cooking time, simmer approximately 45 minutes.

Serves 6

Serve over cooked spaghetti pasta noodles and garnish with fresh chopped basil and grated Parmesan cheese; add a salad and slice of garlic bread - awesome dinner!