Spaghetti and Meatballs

Buongiorno!! If you come from an Italian American family, odds are you have had your fair share of Sunday night dinners. The family gathering in the kitchen…laughing, having a good time, maybe having a few sips of wine and cooking!! A classic Sunday night dinner is of course, Spaghetti and Meatballs. Every family has their own recipe and that is one of the things I love about certain recipes. Ever family has their own and that is what makes them so special.

I like the outside of my meatballs to get a little browned, but I know that that’s just me. We always have a debate in my household because my family prefers them softer, usually soaking in the tomato sauce. I myself like the exterior a bit crunchier. So I usually end up making two batches so I keep everyone happy and satisfied, that’s just my nature. My secret ingredient in my meatballs is…..wait for it…..ricotta!!! It makes them so light, tender, moist and delicious!! I love my recipe for meatballs; they are as perfect as meatballs can get, in my humble opinion. I obviously have to serve my meatballs with spaghetti and my classic tomato sauce.

Sweet little story about these meatballs…when I made these the other night for my family, as they were frying, the smell really reminded me of what I remember my Nonna Nettie’s Meatballs smelling like. I thought maybe it was just wishful thinking…but then I made a little test meatball (which I always do and highly suggest!) and gave it to my mom to try. She said “wow, these taste like grandmas.” To have my mother say that my meatballs, which I still remember my grandma frying specially for me over the weekend, is the absolute best compliment I could ever get about my cooking.

So try this recipe and let me know how it compares to yours!!

Spaghetti and Meatballs

Tomato Sauce

¼ extra virgin olive oil

1 clove of garlic, minced

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. pepper

½ tsp. red pepper

2 large cans of San Marzano tomatoes

Handful of fresh basil, chopped

Prepare a medium size pot over medium heat. Add your olive oil and minced garlic. Allow the garlic to soften, but not brown. Add your salt, pepper and red pepper. Add your tomatoes and cook them down a little. Add a handful of the basil. Cook for 30 minutes covered on low heat, occasionally stirring.  You can start the meatballs now…

Spaghetti and Meatballs

1 pound of ground beef

1 cup of whole wheat bread crumbs

¼ cup parmigiana, grated

¼ ricotta

Handful of fresh parsley, chopped

Handful of fresh basil, chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

1 large egg

1 tsp. salt

¼ tsp. pepper

½ cup olive oil

1 box of whole grain spaghetti

1 tbsp. salt, for the pasta water

Crumble the beef in a mixing bowl. Add the breadcrumbs, parmigiana, ricotta, parsley, basil and garlic. Beat the egg with 1 tsp. salt and ¼ tsp. pepper in a small bowl. Pour this over the meat. Mix the ingredients with cleans hands just until blended. DO NOT OVER MIX!! If you over mix, you will get really hard, tough meatballs. We don’t want that!! Shape the meatballs in balls. You can make them as big or small as you like, but make them roughly the same size so they cook at the same speed. Heat your olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Put the meatballs in the skillet and fry. Turn them when they are golden brown, around 10 minutes. Cook them for around 20 minutes. As I said, I prefer my meatballs well done. 

Start salted boiling water in a large pot over high heat. Pour in half of the tomato sauce over the meatballs. Cook for an additional 30 minutes in the sauce as the water boils. You will want to cook the meatballs until there is no pink in the center.

Once the water is boiling, add the spaghetti and stir. Once it is al dente, strain the pasta and add to the remaining tomato sauce. Serve a portion of the pasta with the meatballs and sauce over it. Buon Appetito!! 

Spaghetti Margherita

Ciao a tutti!! Today I will be sharing with you some delicious Spaghetti Margherita! I would also like to remind you that I am a semi-finalist in Eggland’s Best “Your Best Recipe” Contest!! My recipe for Chocolate Hazelnut Espresso Cookies was selected. You can please vote until Sept. 30^th 12PM. You can take a look at http://www.egglandsbest.com/yourbestrecipe and on the Eggland's Best "Your Best Recipe" Contest tab on the Eggland's Best Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/egglandsbesteggs/app_251842034899170 - you have to “like” Egglands Best. You will see my recipe under the Dessert Category under Caroline B. I would very much appreciate it. Thank you all! Now…onto the pasta!!

I love the idea that a lot of Italian food is based on simplicity. Nothing fancy or over complicated, just good old food and I think that that is what makes Italian cuisine so appealing to everyone. You don’t necessarily have to be a trained chef or even that great in the kitchen to be able to make a fantastic meal. Which brings me to this….Spaghetti Margherita.

When I was little, I obviously ate a lot of Italian food. Whenever I went to my nonna’s, she would make me tons of fried cauliflower, meatballs and chicken cutlet. But maybe you noticed that something was missing. Pasta. I’ll tell you why. I didn’t like pasta until I was around twelve. I know, I know, I’m still ashamed to admit it. Everyone loves pasta, in one form or another, whether we’re talking about Italian penne, Chinese lo mein or American mac and cheese. I just didn’t like it, I don’t know why; I couldn’t tell you if you asked. Now of course, I’m a pasta fanatic!! Give me any sort of pasta and I will make something amazing out of it. Today I have prepared a classic and easy dish of Spaghetti Margherita.

In 1889, during a visit to Naples, Queen Margherita of Italy was served a pizza that had the colors of the Italian flag, red (tomato), white (mozzarella) and green (basil). This kind of pizza has been named after the Queen as Pizza Margherita and of course you can see many recipes that simply use the same red, white and green method and name it after the Queen as well, like this pasta dish.

This is an incredibly easy pasta dish to prepare. All you have to do is make the fresh tomato sauce, sprinkle some mozzarella over the pasta and top with a few leaves of fresh basil and there you have it! Spaghetti Margherita!

Spaghetti Margherita

1 box of whole wheat spaghetti (you can use white flour of course)

Salt- for the pasta water

15 ounce can of crushed tomatoes

¼ cup olive oil

6 cloves of garlic (or as much as you like)

Salt

Pepper

Basil (finely chopped)

Crushed Italian herbs

1 fresh mozzarella

Basil- as much as you would like to top off your pasta

Start by preparing your water over the stove on high heat. Salt your water.

Prepare a deep pot with your ¼ cup of olive oil; make sure the pot is big enough since you will eventually be putting the pasta in it.

Coarsely chop your garlic and add to the pot, cook until soft. Add tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, basil and crush Italian herbs. Cook 6-7 minutes, until garlic is soft and then for an additional 15 minutes while the pasta water boils.

When the pasta water is boiling, put in all of the spaghetti until it is al dente. I find that spaghetti cooks pretty quickly, probably around 5-7 minutes depending on your stove. Now, drain your water and add the spaghetti to the tomato sauce.

What I like to do is use the mozzarella and basil on each individual portion. So, divide your portions and shred some mozzarella directly on top. Assuming the pasta is slightly warm, it should melt the cheese slightly. If you don’t want the cheese to melt, let the pasta cool for at least ten minutes before serving. Then, put a few fresh leaves of basil on top. Buon Appetito! 

Spaghetti Sausage Pie

Ciao a tutti! Last night I knew I felt like making dinner but I wasn’t quite sure what to prepare. I looked through my refrigerator and it hit me! I had fresh eggs, sausage, parsley, garlic, ricotta and parmigiana, so…..Spaghetti Sausage Pie!! If you are familiar with the Food Network show “Chopped” you know that the premise of the show is to build a dish out of four ingredients in the mystery basket. Now, I don’t have a lot of the unusual ingredients that they showcase, but I love challenging myself and trying to figure out what to prepare just by seeing what foods I have in the house.

I love Pasta Pies. The great thing about pasta pies is that you can pretty much do whatever you like with them. For one thing, if you have some leftover pasta from a previous dish and want to spice it up, you can easily add some ingredients to it and bake into a fresh and delicious pie. It is also a great dish served room temperature for a picnic and it travels very well for a party. Like I said, I had sausage, but you can also make it with chicken, beef or vegetables. I cook my pasta al dente because when it is mixed with the egg and cheese mixture it will naturally soften up a little, so when you cook your pasta make sure that it doesn’t get too soft. This way, when it is out of the oven, the inside will be just creamy enough with the cheese and the outside should have a light crunch.

I made this with whole wheat spaghetti; as I’ve said before, I do what I can to make my recipes a bit healthier. Obviously, I am not going to try to pass this dish off as healthy, but every little thing counts. I had a nice slice fresh out of the oven with a side of sautéed zucchini. Let me know what you all think!!

Spaghetti Sausage Pie

2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 links of Italian sausage- hot or sweet, it’s up to you!
¾ cup of ricotta
½ cup of parmigiana
Salt
Pepper
Red pepper
Garlic-chopped
Parsley- chopped
2 eggs
½ a box of spaghetti

First, prepare a small pan with olive oil over medium heat and put the sausage in. Let it cook on each side for a few minutes. Once it has browned, flip to the other side, repeat flipping them every few minutes until they are fully cooked.

Start boiling a pot of water for your pasta and salt the water.

While the sausage is cooking, in a medium size bowl, mix ricotta, parmigiana, salt, pepper, red pepper, chopped garlic and parsley. All of the seasonings are to taste, so you can add as little or as much as you would like. In fact, what I like to do is try a little of cheese mix before I have added the eggs so I can see if it is well seasoned. Next, add the eggs and beat until thoroughly combined.

Once the sausage is done, let it cool for at least ten minutes. At this point, the water should be boiling so throw your pasta in. Spaghetti cooks very quickly, so stand by. While that is cooking, cut your sausage into slices and add to the cheese and egg mixture. Drain the pasta and run cool water it so it doesn’t instantly cook the eggs!!

I cook my pie in a traditional glass pie pan. You can also use a casserole dish if you like. Whatever you use, oil it so the pasta doesn’t stick. Heat your oven to 350 degrees. Add the pasta to the egg and cheese and stir. Put the pasta mix in your pan and into the oven, cook for 30-45 minutes. Everyone’s oven is different, so be sure to check in every few minutes. You don’t want the center soft and undercooked, but you don’t want it burnt. Once you the pie is done, let it sit for around fifteen minutes before serving. Serve with a nice side of sautéed vegetables or a fresh tomato and arugula salad. Buon Appetito!!