ITALIAN MEATBALLS #2

By Phil-2

Ingredients

• 3.5 oz ground veal
• 3.5 oz ground beef
• 3.5 oz ground pork
• 11.5 oz spaghetti
• 3.5 oz ricotta
• 1 egg
• 1 handful parsley, chopped
• grated Parmesan cheese
• salt
• pepper
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• 3 oz stale crust-less bread
• 2 Tbsp milk
• breadcrumbs
• 1 small onion
• olive oil
• 34 oz tomato purée
• fresh basil

Preparation

Step 1

When making meatballs, make them small!

In a large bowl mix the three kinds of ground meat (veal, beef and pork) together with the ricotta, egg, chopped parsley, a couple of tablespoons of grated Parmesan, a pinch of salt, a generous grinding of pepper, a minced clove of garlic and the crust-less bread that has been softened in milk. If necessary, add some breadcrumbs in order to obtain a firm but not too dry mixture. Shape into meatballs that should be about 2-3 cm in diameter and let them rest 15-20 minutes before cooking them.

Meanwhile, prepare the sauce: sauté the thinly sliced onion in olive oil in a large skillet. When it has turned a golden brown color, add the tomato purée, salt and pepper and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the meatballs, cover the skillet and cook for 40 minutes, turning the meatballs over once so that they cook uniformly. When they are done, turn off the flame keeping the pan covered.

Now cook the spaghetti in abundant salted water according to the time indicated on the package. Drain the spaghetti and trickle on some olive oil before serving the pasta in individual plates with the tomato sauce and meatballs and decorated with some basil leaves.