Kitchen Basics: Spaghetti and Meatballs

Remember the classic children’s book Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, about a town where food falls from the sky for each meal? I found out recently that they’re turning it into a computer animated movie. Although the creators of “Clone High” have written and directed it, I highly doubt it will satisfy a generation for whom the book carries such strong feelings of nostalgia. I don’t know about you, but for me the book inspired many crayon drawings of houses and trees covered in a variety of foodstuffs. (I also understand they’re aiming for the twelve and under set rather than the jaded twenty-somethings in my peer group. The studios are betting we’ll all just go see the film version of Where the Wild Things Are, drawn in by a Dave Eggers screenplay, Spike Jonze’s direction, and a trailer that includes an Arcade Fire song. They’re betting right in my case, but such is life [link probably NSFW].)

Looking up information on a movie about meatballs falling from the sky naturally led me making meatballs in my kitchen. I’ve made meatballs only once before and while they turned out okay, they were far from great. After seeing a number of recipes around the web that combined ground beef with a number of other meats, I decided to try mixing ground beef and pork to create a more flavorful meatball. An additional twist was my use of whole wheat breadcrumbs instead of the traditional Italian breadcrumbs, which I believe added a very subtle nutty and sweet flavor. The recipe and more photos after the jump. Warning to vegetarian/vegan readers: raw meat photos ahead.

Basic Meatballs
-1/2 lb. ground beef
-1/2 lb. ground pork
-1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
-1 cup homemade whole wheat bread crumbs (white bread is also fine)
-2 tbs. fresh parsley, chopped
-2 tsp. dried oregano
-1 tsp. garlic salt
-1 tsp. kosher salt
-1 1/2 tsp. black pepper
-1 egg, lightly beaten
-2 tbs. olive oil

1. Mix together all of the ingredients except the olive oil together in a medium bowl. Use your hands to create the meatballs, making them just a bit larger than a ping pong ball.

2. Heat the olive oil in the bottom of a large saucepan over medium heat. You’ll use this pan later to create the sauce and simmer the meatballs, so make sure the sides are tall and that it has a cover. Carefully place the first batch meatballs in the pan using a set of tongs or long wooden spoon, leaving ample room around each meatball. Turn each meatball every few minutes, or until fully browned, for a total of approximately 10 minutes. Place the cooked meatballs on a plate covered with a paper towel.

3. Once all of the meatballs are cooked, pour out the oil, but don’t clean the bottom of the pan. Start the sauce.

Sauce
-2 tbs. olive oil
-1 small yellow onion, diced
-2 garlic cloves, minced
-12 oz can pureed tomatoes
-12 oz can whole, peeled tomatoes
-4 tbs. fresh parsley, chopped (2 for sauce, 2 for garnish)
-1 tsp. kosher salt
-1 tsp. black pepper
-sprinkling of red pepper flakes
-dash of sugar (optional)

1. Heat the olive oil in the saucepan over medium-high heat, then add the onion. Saute until translucent (about 5 minutes), then add the minced garlic and stir until fragrant (about 30 seconds).

2. Add the can of whole tomatoes with their juice and mash them in the pan using a wooden spoon or potato masher. Mix in the pureed tomatoes, parsley, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and sugar (if desired), and bring to a boil.

3. Add the meatballs to the sauce, gently stir to coat them, and turn down the heat to a bare simmer. Cover and cook for 25 minutes.

Pasta
-1 lb. spaghetti

1. While the meatballs are cooking, make the spaghetti according to package directions.

2. Serve the meatballs and spaghetti topped with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley.