Basghetti and Meatheads

That's how I referred to the classic dish when I was just a wee one. To this day I have difficulty saying "meatballs" rather than "meatheads". I got to thinking after watching a recent episode of Barefoot Contessa that I've never actually attempted meatballs from scratch. If I want meat in my spaghetti I usually just throw in ground beef and brown it up then throw the sauce on top. After making this recipe, I can say I probably won't be doing it again. What a hassle, and what a mess all that grease made. Granted I haven't even eaten it yet (Queen of Food Prep!) but I can't imagine it's going to deliver.

I'm including the recipe here off Food Network's site because Queen Ina doesn't allow her recipes to be posted more than 2 weeks after the show airs (can you see me rolling me eyes?!).
It also occurred to me the cost incurred to make these LK#@(H%$! meatballs was way more than if I'd just bought the great Butterball turkey meatballs, and they would have been a lot healthier.

Yield: 6 servings

For the meatballs:
1/2 pound ground veal
1/2 pound ground pork
*edit - I don't eat veal so I used 1 pound ground pork
1 pound ground beef
1 cup fresh white bread crumbs (4 slices, crusts removed)
*edit - oops, yeah, I used wheat and I left the crusts on - egads!
1/4 cup seasoned dry bread crumbs
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 extra-large egg, beaten
Vegetable oil
Olive oil

For the sauce:
1 tablespoon good olive oil
1 cup chopped yellow onion (1 onion)
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/2 cup good red wine, such as Chianti
* edit - since I'm pg I wasn't going to just open a full bottle and let it go to waste, so I used this cheapie 2-serving bottle of red. I didn't look at the label b/c I didn't want to salivate
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, or plum tomatoes in puree, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For serving:
1 1/2 pounds spaghetti, cooked according to package directions
Freshly grated Parmesan

Place the ground meats, both bread crumbs, parsley, Parmesan, salt, pepper, nutmeg, egg, and 3/4 cup warm water in a bowl. Combine very lightly with a fork. Using your hands, lightly form the mixture into 2-inch meatballs. You will have 14 to 16 meatballs. (Her meatballs are enormous, and if I'd left them 2 inches they never would have cooked. I had 24 normal-person-sized meatballs)

Pour equal amounts of vegetable oil and olive oil into a large (12-inch) skillet to a depth of 1/4-inch. Heat the oil. Very carefully, in batches, place the meatballs in the oil and brown them well on all sides over medium-low heat, turning carefully with a spatula or a fork. This should take about 10 minutes for each batch. Don't crowd the meatballs. Remove the meatballs to a plate covered with paper towels. Discard the oil but don't clean the pan. (I used my Le Creuset Dutch oven which does not have a 12-inch bottom. Not all of us have enormous skillets Ina! Plus I like to make sauce in the oven - it NEVER would have fit in a skillet. Is she smoking again???)

For the sauce, heat the olive oil in the same pan. Add the onion and saute over medium heat until translucent, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the wine and cook on high heat, scraping up all the brown bits in the pan, until almost all the liquid evaporates, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, parsley, salt, and pepper.

Return the meatballs to the sauce, cover, and simmer on the lowest heat for 25 to 30 minutes, until the meatballs are cooked through. Serve hot on cooked spaghetti and pass the grated Parmesan.

The sauce I tasted before the long simmer was very strongly flavored of the wine. This is probably my fault for the wine I picked. But still, I like my tomato sauces on the sweet side, and this is definitely NOT sweet. We'll see how it tastes after it's mellowed and picked up the flavor of the meatballs. I have a feeling this is a "grown-up" sauce, and I like mine like I liked it when I was a kid - sweet like Prego. Granted I'd never eat Prego now, but still. Mine is a little grown-up since it has brandy in it...

Since I had bought 3 pounds of ground beef and had some red peppers in the fridge I decided to do a 2-for-1 and made some baked pepper filling as well. I'll add that tomorrow...