Ricotta Meatballs

By cacelias

The perfect meatball is soft and moist and super juicy. When done right, it's the ultimate comfort food. I have tried lots of different meatball recipes over the years, and this is by far my most favorite! Delicious flavor and texture! Make a large batch and freeze the extras to be used at a later date!

Recipe from Better Home and Gardens, March 2015

Ingredients

• 1 large yellow onion, minced
• 1/4 cup minced garlic
• 3 T olive oil
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 1/2 pounds ground beef, 80% lean
• 1 cup grana Padano cheese, grated (if I cannot find this I use Parmesan)
• 1 15oz. carton whole milk ricotta cheese
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf Italian parsley, chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/4 t pepper
• Marinara sauce

Details

Servings 65
Preparation time 40mins
Cooking time 25mins

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 shallow baking pans with parchment or silpats, set aside.

In a large skillet cook onion and garlic in 1 T of olive oil 8 minutes or until translucent. (I usually add the garlic in the pan during the last few minutes so that it doesn't burn.) Let cool.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine eggs, ground beef, grana Padano, ricotta, panko, parsley, basil, salt and pepper. (I like to put on disposable plastic gloves and mix with my hands until throughly combined, you could always use the paddle attachment on a stand mixer as well.) Add onion mixture and combine.

Shape into 2-inch balls. Place on prepared pans.

Brush with remaining olive oil. Bake 25 minutes (or longer) until lightly browned and cooked through to 165 degrees.

In a sauce pan bring marinara sauce to boiling. Add meatballs; coat with sauce. Simmer 5 minutes. Serve warm with pasta.

Makes 65 meatballs

Freeze leftover meatballs up to 1 month.