The Cookbook of the Traumatized Neighbor - Spaghetti Meatballs

It doesn’t matter what age you are, there are few who can deny the joy of eating a good bowl of spaghetti and meatballs. Deliciously savory, beautifully spiced, and surprisingly satisfying, all wrapped up in one happy meal. This one is more complex than previous recipes, as it not only takes time to make but also to cook.

1 kg of ground meat, either go 50/50 veal/beef or pork/beef
1 large egg
1 dl bread crumbs
2/3 dl milk
1 dl freshly grated Parmesan
1 dl finely chopped parsley
1/2 to 1 tablespoons of olive oil
3 cloves of garlic
1 teaspoon chili flakes
2 teaspoon mixed Italian herbs. This time around I went for 2 parts oregano, 1 part thyme and 1 part sage.
2 teaspoons of salt (or to taste)
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper (or to taste)
1 batch of the Red Sauce/tomato sauce made in advance

See, a much longer list this time. First off, prep your red sauce if you haven’t already, otherwise you will not get any sauce with your meatballs. As for the meatballs, mix the meat, bread crumbs, Parmesan, dried herbs, chili flakes, parsley, garlic, olive oil, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Whisk the egg and milk in a separate container, mix all the ingredients in the meat bowl, and then incorporate everything, making sure to check the wetness as you go. Just don’t overwork it, as the meatballs will get very dense otherwise. Oh, and fry up a small sample to make sure the seasoning is good.

And now it’s time to shape the balls, so pick a spoon of your choice, and then roll them into perfect plump spheres. Now into the oven they go, about 5 minutes to then be flipped and back they go for another 5 minutes before you place them into your red sauce. The key is to brown them a bit, but you will also let them stew in the sauce so don’t worry too much about internal temperature. Also, add those meat drippings into your red sauce, leaving no flavor behind! And then it’s time to simmer and pick out your pasta. Boil it to perfection and dig in!