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Spaghetti and Meatballs with Quick Meat




Source of Recipe


USA Weekend


Recipe Introduction


Prep and cooking time: 65 minutes



List of Ingredients




Meatballs
3 unpeeled garlic cloves
1/4 cup vegetable oil, for frying
1 pound ground meat (equal parts beef, pork and veal)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
9 saltine crackers, crushed fine
Heaping 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. each black pepper, oregano
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1 Tb. chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup water
1 egg
1 tsp. tomato paste

Sauce
1 1/2 pounds Italian sausage, cut into approximate 4-inch lengths
1/4 cup olive oil
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, cut into small dice
2 cans (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes

Pasta
2 pounds spaghetti if serving 10, or 1 pound spaghetti and 1 recipe polenta (use boxed) if dividing meal over 2 nights

Recipe



Meatballs: Heat a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add unpeeled garlic and toast until skins are spotty brown, about 5 minutes. Remove from skillet, peel, mince and set aside.

Heat oil over low heat in a large Dutch oven. In a big bowl, break up meat into small clumps. Add garlic, cheese, cracker crumbs, salt, pepper, oregano, basil and parsley; mix lightly with fingers. In a small bowl, whisk water, egg and tomato paste. Add egg mixture to meat mixture; mix lightly with fingers. Using a 2 Tb. coffee scoop, form into marshmallow or drum shapes. (You should have 20 to 24 meatballs.)

Cook in batches over medium-high heat until browned on both sides, about 5 minutes total. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

Sauce: Reduce heat under now-empty Dutch oven to medium; cook sausages, turning often, until nicely browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Add olive oil, then garlic and prosciutto, to the pot; cook, scraping up brown bits, until garlic is fragrant and starts to turn golden, about 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and enough water (1/2 to 1 cup) to make a sauce that is neither gloppy nor watery. Return sausages to the pot, bring sauce to a simmer, partly cover, then cook over low heat until sauce tastes sweet, rich and meaty, about 15 minutes.

Fish out sausages and transfer to a plate; cover and keep warm. Add meatballs to sauce and return to a simmer. Partly cover and simmer until fully cooked and flavors blend, about 10 minutes. Transfer meatballs to a plate; cover and keep warm. (Meatballs, sausages and sauce can be cooled, covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days. To make two meals, divide sauce. Add meatballs to one half and sausages to the other. Serve meatballs with 1 pound cooked pasta, and for another meal serve sausage with same or over polenta.)

Bring 1 gallon of water to boil. Add spaghetti and 2 Tbs. salt to boiling water; cook until just tender. Drain and return to kettle. Add about 1/3 of the sauce to the spaghetti and toss to coat. Transfer to a large, shallow serving bowl. Top with remaining sauce. Arrange meatballs on top and sausages around the perimeter. Serve immediately, passing around grated Parmesan cheese separately.

Serves: 10 (in one meal).

Per serving: 854 calories, 34g protein, 78g carbohydrates, 44g fat (13g saturated), 3.6g fiber, 1,129mg sodium.