Sunday, February 6, 2011

Meatballs!



So I’m not sure if you’re a fan of Food Network, or in particular, Bobby Flay’s Throwdown, but he did one a while ago against Mike Maroni of Maroni’s Cuisine in Northport, NY and the battle was meatballs.  I loovve a good meatball – warm, tender, flavorful – yum. (TWSS!  Sorry, couldn’t help myself)

Anyway, I thought the Super Bowl would be the perfect opportunity for these.  People can eat them just with sauce, or in subs.  I’ve had them once before and they were really delicious, though I didn’t make them myself, so I wanted to try them on my own as I don’t think I’ve ever actually made meatballs before….  They’re actually pretty simple – just mix up all the ingredients, form into golf-ball sized balls (or larger if you prefer) and bake.  That’s right, no frying, another reason to love these.

I decided to mix things up a bit and stuff some of them with cheese, because really, can you ever have too much cheese?  I just cut some fresh mozzarella into small chunks (about ½” pieces) and formed the meat around the cheese – very easy and so worth the extra work! Don’t they look good?

Once these are done, either serve them as is and top with your favorite sauce, or undercook them just slightly and let them simmer in the sauce to cook through and soak up even more flavor.

As for the big game?  Well good luck to whichever team you prefer, but I’ll just sit back with friends, eat and wait for the hockey playoffs.  J



Ingredients:

1lb ground chuck
4 oz. dried bread crumbs
4 large eggs (start with 3 - I found mixture a little sticky)
4 oz whole milk (I used 1% and they taste great)
6 oz grated romano cheese
3 oz grated or minced onion
2 oz minced fresh garlic
2 oz finely chopped fresh parsley
2 oz. finely chopped fresh basil

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray baking sheet with cooking spray.  Mix all ingredients in large bowl. If mixture is loose or sticky, add more bread crumbs.  Roll meatballs loosely and place on baking sheet.  Bake for approx 30 min.
* I found that putting the meatballs on a wire rack over the baking sheet worked better - you don't get the yummy crust on the bottom of the meatball, but this way all the fat can drip away.