Meatballs and Marinara Sauce

Spaghetti and meatballs is a classic meal that is an all-around crowd pleaser. It is one of the earliest dinners I remember eating, probably because it was captured on film - it's hard to resist taking a picture of a kid covered in marinara sauce! My mom has a very distinct, very popular "spaghetti sauce" and meatballs recipe. Now that I make it on my own, I have added a few twists to suit my taste as well as Andy's, but it is all inspired by the original sauce and meatball recipe that my mom still makes. Everyone seems to have their own version of meatballs and sauce, and after many (many) experiments this is the final recipe that we like the best... we like it so much I actually wrote it down! Serve this sauce over spaghetti for a comforting meal any time of year. Enjoy :o)

Italian Meatballs 

makes approximately 2 dozen

Ingredients

1 lb. ground beef (80/20 works well)

1/2 lb. ground pork

1 egg

1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs (use a slice or two of white bread and pulverize in the food processor)

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup grated onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1 tbsp. dried Italian seasoning

3 tbsp. olive oil

Mix together the breadcrumbs and milk. Add all other ingredients except the meats and mix very well. Add in the beef and pork and mix well until the breadcrumb mixture is evenly distributed. In a large, heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, heat the oil. Roll the meat mixture into balls approximately the size of golf balls (or whatever size you want, you will just end up with a different quantity). Add the meatballs in two or three batches and brown all over. Remove to a plate and continue browning all meatballs. Meatballs will not be cooked through and they will finish cooking in the sauce. Make the sauce in the same pot.

Marinara Sauce

makes approximately 1 quart

Ingredients

1 large onion, diced fine

2 carrots, peeled and diced fine

2 stalks celery, diced fine

3-4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 tsp. dried basil

1 tsp. dried parsley

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1 tbsp. tomato paste

1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes, preferably San Marzano

1 tsp. sugar

Drain some of the excess fat from the pot used to brown the meatballs leaving enough to coat the bottom. Add the onions, garlic, carrots and celery as well as the salt and pepper and cook over medium low heat until softened, approximately 10 minutes. Add the herbs, tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, and sugar and stir well to combine. Bring to a gentle simmer and add the meatballs and any juice that accumulated on the plate. Cover and simmer gently for 30 minutes, stirring every few minutes to prevent the bottom from burning. If you would like a smooth sauce, remove the meatballs and puree the sauce until smooth, then return the meatballs to the sauce. If you don't mind some veggie pieces, leave the sauce as-is. You might need to add extra salt or pepper to taste. Serve over spaghetti or use the extra sauce in other dishes.

Soft Ginger"snap" Cookies

I recently won a wonderful prize from a cooking competition this weekend! The prize? A new set of St. Patrick's Day dishtowels. The competition? The second annual Cookie Swap amongst friends. The details? These delicious ginger cookies won me second place! I lost by one point to a delicious peanut butter and chocolate cookie which is a classic, irresistible combination (congrats, Melissa!). I was also surprised to have one of the only cookies without chocolate in them, which as you probably know is very unlike me as I am addicted to all things chocolate. At any rate, this is the delicious recipe from the cookie swap. Enjoy!

Soft Ginger"snap" Cookies

Yield: 3 dozen

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups butter, softened (no substitutes)
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup molasses
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Additional sugar for coating

Vanilla glaze, recipe follows

In a medium bowl mix together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, salt and nutmeg. Set aside. In another bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the molasses and mix well. Gradually mix in the flour mixture just until combined. Refrigerate dough for at least one hour or until firm enough to handle.

Preheat oven to 350. Make 1 inch balls of the dough and roll smooth. Toss in additional sugar to coat. Place 2-3 inches apart on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 8-12 minutes or until puffy and slightly browned. Allow to cool for one minute on the cookie sheets before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Glaze as desired. Once glaze has hardened, store cookies in an airtight container. Yum!

Vanilla Glaze
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 teaspoons milk
2 teaspoons light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

 In a small bowl mix together sugar and milk until smooth. Add corn syrup and vanilla. If too thick, add more corn syrup. Drizzle over cookies and allow to harden.

Coconut Shrimp

According to Andy, this was one of the first memorable meals I made for him. I don't remember this. Either way, I decided to make them recently on Valentine's night for dinner because they are quick and tasty, and apparently memorable! I found jumbo shrimp (my favorite oxymoron) on sale and they worked really well because it was a perfect balance of shrimp to coconutty batter.

I made a dipping sauce with orange marmalade, a little sriracha, mustard, and a touch of agave nectar. Feel free to make a dipping sauce to suit your taste. Enjoy!

Coconut Shrimp!

Coconut Shrimp 

Yield: 3-4 appetizer portions, or 2 main course portions

Ingredients
1 egg
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup beer
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

hot sauce or sriracha to taste (less than a tsp.)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2-3 cups shredded coconut
12 jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 cup oil for frying

In a mixing bowl, mix together the egg and beer. Add the baking powder, 1/2 cup of flour and the hot sauce. Mixture should resemble the consistency of pancake batter.  Put the remaining 1/4 cup flour in another small bowl. Lastly, place the coconut in a separate bowl.

Pat the shrimp dry and dredge in the flour shaking off any excess. Dip into the batter, then coat well with the coconut. Place coated shrimp on a baking sheet lined with wax paper and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

In a medium skillet, heat the oil. Once hot, add the shrimp in batches and fry for 2-3 minutes per side or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels and season with a little salt. Fried shrimp can be kept warm on a baking sheet in the oven at 200 degrees. Serve warm on their own or with a dipping sauce. Yum!