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.