Italian Meatballs
I'm not very good at recipe writing because I rarely measure when I'm cooking. Who has time for all that? Who wants to do all those dishes? Who only adds 1/2 teaspoon of salt...ever?
Certainly not me.
But telling people to "add breadcrumbs until it feels right" doesn't really work, especially if someone is making a recipe for the first time. So I'm working on writing recipes down, at least somewhat specifically, so I can share them.
This meatball recipe is one I grew up watching my mom make. I've always made them the way I remember from childhood...my mom just pouring ingredients into the bowl. So I asked her recently for the official recipe, so I could publish it on my blog.
The recipe she sent has a measurement in hand cups. When I tell you I laughed out loud, I actually did laugh out loud. "Hand cups" is about as helpful a measurement as "looks right".
What's the point of this story? It's hard to mess these up. If I measure with my heart and my mom measures with the palm of her hand, I'm pretty sure there's a low margin of error. So gather your ingredients, toss in seasonings like you're Emeril Lagasse, and enjoy!
Italian Meatballs
Ingredients-
3 lbs of ground beef
1/2 c. breadcrumbs
2 eggs
Granulated garlic
Granulated onion
Salt
Pepper
Italian Seasoning
Directions-
Mix all the ingredients, using your hands or a stand mixer with paddle attachment.
Roll into balls of desired size.
Place them on a broiler pan so that they are not touching.
Broil for about 8 minutes, or until they can be gently squeezed with tongs and not fall apart.
Notes-
Meatballs are a great way to get in organ meat! There are several ways to do this; you can empty desiccated liver pills into the mixture. You can freeze liver that has been put through the food-processor in an ice cube tray and add it, defrosted. You can also freeze organ meats, cooked and whole, and grate them into food.
These are amazing to have in the freezer! Once they are cooked, place them in a single layer on a sheet pan and freeze. Once they are frozen, place them in a plastic bag for storage.
While these are intended to be eaten with tomato sauce and spaghetti, the flavor is very versatile. They can also be eaten with gravy, BBQ sauce, or other condiments.