Meatballs, apparently worth the hassle...

Happy Sunday Darlings, its the end of the weekend and I was strangely inspired.
I am not a big fan of periodicals (unless my YouTube subscriptions count?) but there is one such publication that I will read cover to cover multiple times. Cook's Illustrated by America's Test Kitchen.

The latest edition.

I adore the way they break down the whys and hows of a recipe, including documentation of their less than successful outcomes. (Remember folks, the difference between science and goofing around is writing stuff down!) Each issue teaches me new techniques and inspires thought. The latest issue included two page spread titled Sausage Meatballs and Spaghetti. It details all about how to use the flavorful sausage in your meatballs without having them become overly dense and/or dry.

It should be available in your local periodical retailer so for the full article go there. I really do recommend it. I personally own several years of their compilations and truly enjoy them.

I read that article a few days ago, then today while browsing Serious Eats (I am a food blogger for a reason ya'll) I stumbled across this gem. How to Make Quick and Easy Italian-American Red Sauce That Tastes Slow Cooked. Hello sexy! Serious Eats is one of my favorite time wasters, especially the Food Lab archives, because I'm not truly wasting time. I'm learning. So there.

These two recipes so close together felt like kismet to me so I braved the Winco weekend crowds and grabbed the ingredients I didn't have on hand.

I won't transcribe the Cook's Illustrated recipe as that smacks of plagiarism to me, but I will post a recipe for what I made as I had to make several adjustments based on volume and the palates of my diners.

Sleepy Ginger's Meatball variation

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

8 teaspoons water

16 oz ground pork

32 oz ground beef 

4 slices of hearty white sandwich bread, crusts removed, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese plus extra for serving

3 large egg yolks

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 Tablespoon italian seasoning (rosemary, oregano, thyme)

Bread, cream, yolks, cheese, and seasonings before pulsing...

• Pre-heat oven to 500 degrees. Set wire rack in lined baking sheet and spray with vegetable oil.
• Dissolve salt and baking soda in water in large bowl. Add pork and beef, fold gently to combine and let stand for 10 minutes.
• Pulse bread, cream, cheese, yolks, garlic, and seasoning in foot processor until smooth paste forms, about 10 pulses, scraping down the sides of bowl as needed. Add meat mixture (do not wash out bowl) and pulse until mixture is well combined, about 5 pulses. Transfer meat mixture back to empty bowl.
• With your wet hands (or gloved hands if you loathe having dirty hands like me), lightly shape mixture into 1 3/4inch round meatballs (about 1 oz each); this is made easier with a #30 scoop. I got 42 meatballs from this recipe. Arrange meatballs, evenly spaced, on prepared wire rack and bake until browned. About 15 minutes, rotating the pan half way through baking.



Gloved up for protection, I loathe getting my hands dirty.

• Remove tray from oven and bask in the glory of MEATBALLS!  Let rest for 5-10 minutes before either simmering into your sauce or packing away for later. I packed half of these meatballs away in the freezer for later meals, they should be good for 3 months but I highly doubt they will be in there that long. 

42 meatballs awaiting their trip to the sauna.

And after their 15 minutes in the oven, golden brown and delicious. And over exposed because I didn't turn on the rammit frackin' light before taking a picture. Patience pays.

Sauce, simmering away. The green is a sprig of fresh basil giving its brightness in the name of my dinner.

Tossed with pasta, plated, and Parmesan-ed. Not as thick as I wanted it, but still fairly good.

I must admit that I made a mistake tonight. I should have started the sauce before I started the meatballs to ensure it would have enough time to cook down. But I was relying too much on the word "Quick" in the recipe title. Quick for me means that I can have dinner completely done and ready to serve in 30-45 minutes. And perhaps I could have with this recipe but I didn't plan things out well. With a new recipe I should have left myself time for adjusting and I didn't. Sad, sad SleepyGinger.

But it was still good and the sauce that I didn't splash thinly over my pasta cooked down beautifully in another 20 minutes. So live and learn. 

Tasty trails my Darlings!