My girlfriends and I decided to have a girl's-night-in while watching the Super Bowl...I said I would cook if they brought the beer! Some things just work out perfectly. I also told them to come hungry, because I making a lot of food. I didn't disappoint. This entire recipe really came from Giada De Laurentiis. I am fairly new at making meatballs, and since I was entertaining, I didn't want to mess it up. I think they turned out great though!
Ingredients:
Meatballs:
1 small onion, grated
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 large egg
3 Tb ketchup
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2/3 cup grated Parmesan
1/4 cup dried Italian-style bead crumbs
1 lbs. ground beef
6 ounces ground pork
2 Tb extra-virgin olive oil
Marinara sauce, recipe to follow
Sandwiches:
12 mini sub (or club) rolls
1/3 freshly grated Parmesan
12 thick slices of Provolone cheese
Directions:
Meatballs: Whisk first seven ingredients together in large bowl. Stir in cheese and bread crumbs. Mix in beef and pork. Using about 1 1/2 tablespoons of meat, and roll meat mixture into 1 to 1 1/2 inch diameter balls.
Heat oil in large frying pan over medium heat. Working in batches, add meatballs to pan and saute until brown on all sides, about 5 minutes. Transfer meatballs onto paper towel to soak any excess oil. Once all meatballs are browned, transfer them to pot of simmering marinara sauce.
Simmer meatballs into sauce for 20-30 minutes or until all flavors have blended. Add salt and pepper to taste.
To make sandwiches: Set oven broil on high. Spoon meatballs plus sauce (should fit about 3 balls) onto mini sub rolls. Place provolone cheese on top of meatballs, and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Place under broil for about three minutes or until cheese is melted. Wrap sandwiches into foil to serve.
G's side notes:
This recipe called for ground veal, but I did not use it. First of all, I couldn't find ground veal at the regular grocery store and didn't feel like asking the butcher, but also the ground pork and ground beef came all in one package, so it was nice and easy! The meatballs turned out great without the veal.
Marinara sauce:
2 Tb extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 carrot, grated
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp black pepper
2 (32 ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 dried bay leaves
In a large cooking pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic until translucent, about 10 minutes. Add carrots and season with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and pepper. Saute another 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes, grated Parmesan cheese and bay leaves and simmer uncovered over low heat until sauce thickens, about 1 hour. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
G's side notes:
I cooked this marinara sauce all day. It just got better and better as it cooked. It didn't originally call for Parmesan cheese, but I thought the cheese would add another layer of flavor, but also help season and thicken. It did start to get a little to thick on me, so I thinned it out with some beef broth.
they look awesome!
ReplyDelete