Mama's Spaghetti and Meatballs

[Mama]

For the Sauce:
1 (28 ounce) can of crushed tomtoes
1 (15 ounce) can of tomato sauce
1 (6 ounce) can of tomato paste
1/2 cup of water
1 tablespoon of sugar
11/2 teaspoon of dried basil
1/2 teaspoon of fennel seeds
1 teaspoon of Italian Seasoning
1 teaspoon of salt
1/4 teaspoon of pepper
2 tablespoons of dried parsley

For the Meatballs:
1/2 pound ground pork
1/2 pound ground veal
1/2 pound ground beef
2 large eggs
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/3 cup of plain breadcrumbs
1/4 cup of Parmesan Cheese
1/4 cup of chopped parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon of pepper
1 cup Olive Oil

For the spaghetti:
1 pound of spaghetti, cooked according to package directions


Put all of the sauce ingredients in a large stockpot.
Mix well, simmer on low heat for an hour before you start your meatballs.

In a large skillet (preferrably cast iron), heat the
Olive Oil over medium heat while you make your meatballs.


In a large bowl, combine all of the meatball ingredients (except the Olive Oil).


Mix gently with your fingertips so that the meatballs will be tender.
Form into large meatballs...I like to make mine about the size of a golf ball.


Fry gently in the Olive Oil, turning to brown all sides.
This will only take a few minutes.
Don't put too many meatballs in the pan at a time because you
want to leave plenty of space between the meatballs so they will brown well.


Put the meatballs in the sauce. Cover and simmer in the sauce for 30 to 45 minutes.

[Keltin]

OMG! You’re going to kill me! That looks fabulous!

We’ve recently converted to doing meatballs. We used to do shredded meat and let it mix in the sauce, but DW got to where she was picking around the meat and eating all her sauce and noodles for some reason. She ended up with a plate of shredded beef. So I started making meatballs, and typically, I grill the meatballs outside and then bring them in and drop them in the sauce.

We slowly figured out that meatballs are just more fun! They make the plate look more interesting, and you can control how much meat you get with each bite.

But YOURS are bigger than MINE!

Those are massive and look incredible! Did you ever see that movie Hancock where they had Spaghetti Madness every Thursday???

Incredible Mama, simply incredible!!

[Sass Muffin]

The day I fall off the vegetarian wagon will be the day I blame Mama, and only Mama.

Gorgeous!!!

[High Cheese]

Ok....anything that is titled "Mama's Spaghetti and Meatballs" HAS to be GOOD!

[joec]

Originally Posted by Keltin

But YOURS are bigger than MINE!

Those are massive and look incredible! Did you ever see that movie Hancock where they had Spaghetti Madness every Thursday???

Incredible Mama, simply incredible!!

My grandmother used to put a hard boiled egg in one of her meat balls and if you got it you did the dishes that night. She made hers about the size of a base ball and two was a more than a meal. I've never seen a pasta I didn't like.

[QSis]

Originally Posted by joec

My grandmother used to put a hard boiled egg in one of her meat balls and if you got it you did the dishes that night.

LOL! I love that, joe!

Mama, spaghetti and meatballs is one of my all-time favorite comfort food meals, and yours looks WICKED COMFORTABLE!!!

Lee

[High Cheese]

.....Wicked! lmao

[lifesaver91958]

looks wonderfully delicious

[QSis]

Help!

Okay, I wanted to save a step by not browning the meatballs first, just dropping them, raw, into the sauce and simmering for 3 hours (which another recipe said to do if you are dropping them in raw).

But now I have a lot of grease floating in my sauce!

Do I need to chill the sauce and just break off pieces of grease?

(shoulda listened to Mama!!!)

Lee

[cookingirl]

no big deal...just spoon the fat off...this makes a softer meatball which is completely infused with the flavor of the sauce/gravy..

[Mama]

Either way will be fine Lee....spoon it off or put it in the fridge until it hardens.

[QSis]

Whew - thanks, ladies! Damn, it smells SO good in here!

I blotted some of the grease with paper towels, and divided the meatballs and sauce into three Tupperware containers (I'm giving some away). I'll check for congealed fat tomorrow.

I can't wait to dig in!

Lee

[Doc]

Thanks for the bump Lee. I bet your spaghet and meat balls came out GREAT.

This is one I wanted to try but never got around to it. I needed the bump.