Spaghetti and Meatballs in Tomato-Basil Sauce

By Jac_M

Feed a crowd of 8 tonight, or cook 6 ounces pasta to serve 4 and freeze half the meatball mixture for later. Spoon into whole-wheat hoagie rolls instead of over pasta

Ingredients

• SAUCE
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 5 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 1/3 cup dry red wine
• 2 (15-ounce) cans unsalted crushed tomatoes
• 2 (14.5-ounce) cans unsalted diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• MEATBALLS
• Cooking spray
• 2 (1-ounce) slices whole-grain bread
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 1/2 pounds 90% lean ground sirloin
• 6 ounces sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 12 ounces uncooked whole-grain spaghetti

Details

Preparation time 60mins
Cooking time 75mins
Adapted from myrecipes.com

Preparation

Step 1

1. To prepare sauce, heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add oil; swirl to coat. Add 1 cup chopped onion, 5 garlic cloves, and basil to pan; cook 4 minutes, stirring frequently. Add tomato paste; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in wine; cook 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and sugar; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 25 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

2. Preheat oven to 450°.

3. To prepare meatballs, coat 2 baking sheets with cooking spray. Tear bread into pieces, and place in the bowl of a food processor; pulse until fine crumbs form. Place breadcrumbs, 1/2 cup chopped onion, 1/3 cup parsley, and next 6 ingredients (through eggs) in a large bowl; stir until combined. Shape into 40 meatballs (about 2 tablespoons each); arrange meatballs on prepared pans. Bake at 450° for 15 minutes. Add meatballs to tomato sauce; simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Follow freezing instructions, or continue recipe.

4. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain. Top pasta with meatball mixture. Sprinkle with remaining 3 tablespoons parsley

How to:
Freeze - Cool meatball mixture completely. Place in a large zip-top freezer bag and freeze.
Thaw- Hold bag under running water for 1 minute. Remove meatball mixture from bag place in a microwave-safe dish, and cover with plastic wrap. Microwave at MEDIUM for 12 minutes, stirring every 3 minutes.
Reheat- Microwave at HIGH for 3 minutes or until thoroughly heated.