I use only pork for meatballs -- usually a combination of sweet and hot Italian sausage if I am not grinding my own meat. Additionally, I add fennel seeds, red pepper flakes, and dried minced garlic; toasted and ground coursley in the spice grinder. I also add dried shallots, salt, and pepper. I find the dried garlic and shallot add a more subtle flavor to the meat than fresh. If you can't find dried shallots, dried minced onion would work just fine. I love Victoria Taylor dried shallots, and often find them in the gourmet foods at TJ Maxx. In the food processor I put two hardy slices of peasant bread and about a half a cup of milk and grind it to make a soft bread paste called a panade.
panade -- here made with cream instead of milk,
because I had some on hand -- decadent!
To that, I add the spices, the meat, and about a cup of shredded Parmesan, and grind it to combine. The result is a soft mixture that can be a little difficult to handle, but it results in a very tender meatball. I do not add egg because, though it does help bind the meat, I think it slightly toughens the cooked meatball. Because they are very soft, I have found it to be much easier to bake them instead of trying to brown them in a frying pan. When forming the meatballs, wetting your hands down every couple of meatballs really helps keep the meat from sticking to your hands.
we like large meatballs, just slightly smaller than a tennis ball
Twenty minutes or so in a 450 degree oven will give you nice browned meatballs. Baking them on a broiling pan allows some of the excess fat to drain away.
golden brown meatballs
For the sauce, I make a basic tomato sauce, which is sliced garlic that has been poached in olive oil until it is just barely golden, tomato paste, diced tomatoes, a pinch of red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. I often have a store of that sitting in the freezer. For spaghetti and meatballs, I usually add quartered crimini mushrooms, sauteed with minced shallot and sometimes a bit of red bell pepper; another big pinch of red pepper flakes, and a couple big pinches of oregano.
the browned meatballs are submerged in the sauce,
and everything is simmered together for 20 minutes or so
The result is a very hardy meal when served with a green salad and maybe a thin slice of garlic toast. I have found a lower carb pasta I like called Dreamfields that is much lower in carbs and higher in fiber than traditional pasta, but still tastes like the real thing. If you run across it in the grocery store, give it a try.
the end result garnished with shaved parm -- Jim's portion -- my portion was a
bit more modest in size...
As you can see, I made quite a bit of sauce and several meatballs. This freezes very well, and will heat up in the microwave in the time it takes to boil pasta. Reheat on a lower heat to avoid exploding meatballs in your microwave.
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