Monday, November 9, 2009

success in the kitchen: cm's own meatballs

dear world,

i am a reasonably accomplished cook. i can bake bread and i have some old standbys, but mostly i make salads. in our kitchen, i am the beta cook to MHM’s alpha cook. this weekend, however, i succeed in making meatballs. ok, everyone can make meatballs, you say. but this is not true! i have failed miserably (several times) at most forms of meatloaf  and usually just avoid the forming of meat into a shape that is not burger.

yesterday i made meatballs without consulting a recipe, without asking any questions and with complete success! here’s what i did:

cm’s own meatballs

ingredients: 1/2 pound ground sirloin, 1/2 pound ground pork, handful of chopped fresh parsley, 1 egg lightly beaten, breadcrumbs, salt and pepper to taste, 2-3 tbsp olive oil, your favorite tomato sauce, 3/4 pound penne pasta

  1. combine the ground beef and ground pork in a large bowl with salt and pepper
  2. add parsley, egg and 2 tbsp of breadcrumbs and mix until evenly incorporated (add more breadcrumbs if mixture is too wet)
  3. roll meat mixture into 1 inch balls and set aside (approximately 12-13 meatballs)
  4. in a large dutch oven heat oil over medium high heat
  5. brown the meatballs in batches and remove
  6. remove some of the left over fat from the pan and add tomato sauce
  7. once the sauce heats through, turn heat down to medium low, add meatballs and simmer with the lid on until cooked through (1/2 hour to 45 minutes)
  8. cook the pasta, drain and stir through with the sauce
  9. serve with fresh chopped parsley and the cheese of your choice (i chose pecorino romano, MHM chose parmesan)

i am super proud of my culinary adventure this weekend. we used the last of the homemade sauce left over from summer tomatoes and V ate almost an entire meatball herself! i should also note that the recipe will serve 4 hungry people (or 2 adults, a small person and leaves at least 2 portions for leftovers). this meal was exactly what we needed on the sunday night before  a long work week.

satiated,

cm

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