Homemade Spaghetti and Meatballs

 

Surprised to finally see another post from me? 

I did a great job keeping up with my blog throughout the end of the summer, but as the school year began it got harder and harder for me to find the time to write. Over the past few months many of you have contacted me and mentioned that you enjoyed reading my blog and were duplicating some of the recipes. THANK YOU!! You have no idea how happy that makes me because I truly enjoy writing this blog. I started blogging to help others learn how to create easy, healthy meals at home and it is about time I get back at it. So, here it goes. I'm back in the saddle again.

 

Daily preparing healthy meals has become a challenging task with a toddler at home! My sweet little Addison is into absolutely everything these days. I honestly never thought I would say it, but leftover night has become one of my favorites at home. Pasta dishes save very well and some would even argue that the leftovers are equally as delicious! That being said, I enjoy cooking large portions of pasta based dishes so that we have leftovers for a couple days.

 

Homemade meatballs are one food that people seem to fear. Ill' be honest...I've never quite understood why. The time they take to make? They don't know what to put in them? Scared they won't be cooked all the way through? Scared to get your hands a little dirty? Either way, I tackled and mastered the meatball years ago and I thought I would share my fool proof recipe with you. Meatballs are easy and always a table pleaser at my home. You can put in what you like...leave out what you don't like. This time around I am making a batch of my basic meatball. Don't be afraid to add anything else you have that you think would be good in addition or substitution to what I use.     

 

 

I am using ground turkey for my meatballs because I prefer to avoid the fats found in beef if possible. I'll save that rant for another day. You can absolutely use ground beef in this recipe if you don't like ground turkey. They will be just as delicious (probably a little more delicious....just not as healthy...hate that!).

 

There aren't many steps involved in the preparation of a meatball. First, I add the ground turkey, chopped onion, bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, a squirt of Dijon mustard and a couple minced cloves of garlic to the bowl.

  



 

I crack one egg over the mixture and then for the fun part....I get my hands dirty mixing. Put your big girl or boy panties on and don't be afraid to get a little messy OR if you have a kid at home let them do it. Kids love the opportunity to help in the kitchen and won't mind a bit if their hands get dirty!

 



 

When all the ingredients are thoroughly mixed I start forming meatballs that are about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. 

 

Optional Step: While forming the meatballs I started to heat olive oil in a pan. Once I have formed all the meat mixture into meatballs I began to drop them into the pan.The purpose of cooking them in the oil is to get a nice sear on all sides; not to cook them all the way through. I love the crispiness that is added to the meatballs from being seared in the olive oil, but if you don't want to hassle with pan searing than you can skip this step.

 

 

After searing the meatballs for a couple minutes, I flip them to sear the other side. Once again, this step is optional and solely to add the crisp you get from a nice pan sear.

 



 

Once I have finished searing the meatballs I place them in a oven safe baking dish. I finish cooking the meatballs in a 375 degree oven for about 25-30 minutes. You can use a meat thermometer to check to see when they are fully cooked, but I'm old school (aka lazy) and just cut one in half to make sure it is cooked through. 

 

While the meatballs are finishing up in the oven I warm up marinara sauce in the pan I just seared the meatballs in. Don't bother cleaning the pan, just pour the sauce on in and use it to deglaze the bottom of the pan. I made a very large batch of homemade marinara a couple months ago, so I decided to use up the rest of that sauce with this batch of meatballs. I let the sauce come to a boil and then turn the burner down to simmer.

 



 

When the meatballs are finished I add them all to the pan and let them take a good sauce bath. Once they are good and soaked in the sauce they are ready to be served!

 

 

I top whole wheat spaghetti with a few of the meatballs and whip up a quick salad to serve along side. Delicious and nutritious!  

 

Homemade Spaghetti and Meatballs

Ingredients

1 lb ground turkey or ground beef
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 small onion, finely chopped
Salt/Pepper
1 egg
Olive oil
1 jar store bought spaghetti sauce
1 lb. pasta

1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Add the ground meat, bread crumbs, cheese, garlic, onion and mustard to a large mixing bowl.
3. Crack the egg over the mixture, liberally add salt and pepper and then mix until all ingredients are well combined. 
4. Form the mixture into balls that are about 11/2 inches in diameter. Should yield about 15-20 meatballs.
5. (Optional Step) Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a medium sauce pan. When the oil beings to ripple add the meatballs to the pan and sear for about 2 minutes on each side.
6. Place the meatballs in an oven safe dish. If you completed step 5 bake the meatballs for 20-30 minutes. If you skipped step 5 bake for 35-40 minutes.
7. While the meatballs are baking, bring a pot of water to a boil and cook your pasta al dente. Be sure to pay attention the to directions on the pasta box because different types of pasta have different cook times. When pasta is finished, drain and set aside.
8. Meanwhile, bring the sauce to a boil in a pan. When the sauce boils reduce the temperature to simmer.
9. Once the meatballs have finished add them to the sauce. Coat the meatballs with the sauce and allow them to simmer in the sauce for about 5 minutes.
10. Serve the meatballs over the pasta and top with Parmesan cheese if desired.