Magic Meatballs

[Robinfood]

Hi
My son has got it into his head that he wants to cook meatballs at the weekend when we're together. Does anyone know of any good and easy recipes that will let him get his hands mucky but aren't too complicated cheers! B

[Kitchen Witch]

What about a baked meatball recipe?

Onions, minced 1/4 cup
Vegetable oil 1 tablespoon
Lean ground beef 2 pounds
Eggs 2
Bread crumb 3/4 cup
Whole milk 1/2 cup
Salt 1/8 teaspoon
Pepper 1/2 teaspoon
Onion powder 2 teaspoons
garlic powder 1/2 teaspoon

1. Preheat oven 400° F. Grease baking sheet lightly with oil.
2. Add 1 tablespoon oil and onions to small skillet. Cook over medium heat, until tender, about 3 minutes.
3. Mix remaining ingredients together in bowl; add onions. Mix until blended, using a large serving spoon.
4. Shape beef mixture into 1- to 2- inch meatballs; place on baking sheet.
5. Bake until thoroughly cooked.

[lvdkeyes]

Italian Tomato Gravy
Ingredients
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• Pinch red pepper flakes
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup red wine
• 2 (28-ounce) cans whole peeled plum tomatoes
• Pinch sugar
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over low heat. Sauté the garlic, red pepper flakes, and herbs for 2 minutes until the herbs are fragrant and garlic is golden (but not overly brown.) Raise the heat to medium, add onion and carrot; cook for 5 minutes until they breakdown and are soft. Deglaze with red wine and reduce to evaporate the alcohol. Crush the canned tomatoes and add to the pot, along with its liquid. Add a pinch of sugar to cut down on the acidity from the tomatoes; season with salt and pepper. Let simmer for 30 minutes, uncovered.

Italian Sausage Meatballs:
• 1 1/2 pounds ground chuck
• 1 1/2 pounds sweet Italian sausage, removed from casings
• 1 pound hot Italian sausage, removed from casings
• 10 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 4 teaspoons Essence, recipe follows
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
In a large bowl, combine the ground chuck, sweet sausage, hot sausage, garlic, eggs, Essence, salt, and black pepper, and mix briefly but thoroughly to distribute seasonings. Shape into meatballs and set aside, refrigerated.

When your gravy is done and is bubbling drop the meatballs in and do not stir until they float. There is no need to fry or bake them first.

Essence
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon dried leaf oregano
1 tablespoon dried thyme

Combine all ingredients thoroughly and store in an airtight jar or container.
Yield: about 2/3 cup

[Kitchen Witch]

lvdkeyes -

Sounds good! I love meatballs! and don't forget - you can always stuff them with a cube of cheese. Mozzarella or provolone go well with tomato sauce based meals while cheddar or jack are nice for brown gravy type meals. And of course - my all time favorite - whether with beef, beef and pork, or beef, pork and veal - add raisins! OMG - strictly from heaven! With or without a tomato based sauce! Great - now I want some. Oh well - I'll just pick up ground beef at the store today - it's Thursday - Italian home - pasta night! LOL

[lvdkeyes]

Don't forget to pick up some It. sausage if you are going to make these meatballs.

[Kitchen Witch]

I make my own sausage and I form it into meatball shapes and patties as well as links. I've even made Italian sloppy joes with it using homemade sauce.

[lvdkeyes]

I make my Italian sausage too because I have a hard time finding some that I like as well as I what I remember from my childhood. I like fennel in my sausage and most doesn't seem to have it.

[Robinfood]

Wow
Lots of ideas to try here
He's really not a fussy eater at all, just as long as he gets to make a mess, he's happy
We'll probably get through all these recipes at some stage.
That's the thing about meatballs, once you've got your basics sorted out, it's a really good dish for experimentation.
Thanks for the input everyone

[Kitchen Witch]

Robinhood - you're very welcomed! and remember that you can even make meatballs using your favorite meatloaf recipe!

lvykeyes - I am a fennel person myself. Lately the markets have been using a jar of paprika for each link - a total turnoff to even look at.

[Robinfood]

Heya
After seeing what ingredients we could get our hands on, e had a go at using half ground beef/half ground pork, using 1 egg to bind
Seasoned well, and used some rosemary and cumin
My son shaped the meatballs (even tried a bit of mozzarella in the middle) - very messy, but lots of fun
I did the sauce - a basic tomato and basil one - and served with spaghetti
We both did the eating
Lovely
Thanks everyone

[Kitchen Witch]

Sounds like it went well for you! Glad you enjoyed it and the best part is - it is something your son will remember for the rest of his life!
(messy mozzarella is good though)!

KW