My original recipe calls for veal, but I use lean ground pork as well as ground chicken. I don’t care for the taste of ground beef no matter how lean it is. The sauce should cover the meatballs, so the amount of tomato sauce used will depend on the size of your baking dish. Mine require about two cups. This will ensure the flavours can merge and I have sufficient sauce for serving. I use my own tomato sauce. It already has carrots and a fair amount of basil in it. There is an endless variety of commercial tomato sauce out there so use your judgement how much parsley, basil and oregano you add to the sauce.
ITALIAN MEATBALLS
1/2 lb lean ground veal 2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 slices of light rye or sourdough bread
1 egg
salt and pepper to taste
1 Tbsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
cooking spray
2 cups tomato sauce
1 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp each dried basil and oregano as needed
2 carrots peeled and sliced
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese for serving
• Place the meat in a large bowl.
• Place 2 Tbsp olive oil in a fry pan.
• Chop the onions and the garlic finely and add to the fry pan.
• Lightly brown the onions and the garlic over medium heat.
• Add the cooked onion mixture to the meat.
• Dampen the bread slices slightly.
• Squeeze out all the water.
• Crumble the bread over the meat.
• Add the egg.
• Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Add the dry herbs.
• Combine really well. There should be no visible chunks of bread in the mixture.
• Form 4 large meatballs.
• Spray the bottom of a small, deep casserole dish with cooking spray.
• Place the meatballs in the casserole.
• Stir in the spices. If you have fresh herbs, add two to three sprigs.
• Add the sliced carrots.
• Pour the tomato sauce on the meatballs.
• Bake in a 350F oven for 2-1/2 hours.
• Serve with pasta and grated Parmesan cheese.
• 4 servings
