Spaghetti and Meatballs

As a kid, I learned a funny song from my best friend’s mother.  To the tune of “On Top of Old Smokey” she would sing “On top of spaghetti/all covered with cheese/I lost my poor meatball/when somebody sneezed/It rolled off the table/and onto the floor/and then my poor meatball/rolled out of the door.”  The song goes on to chronicle how the now free range meatball settled under a bush, turned to mush, and then grew into a meatball tree.  I was fascinated by the idea of a food that inspired a song.

Spaghetti was a bi-weekly staple at our house, but my mom never made meatballs.  Even after I begged her to.  Even after I sang her the song.  She’d fry up some hamburger and add it to the tomato sauce, so it’s not like she was anti-meat, she just didn’t want to go to any more trouble than was necessary. (Mom didn’t particularly like to cook.)  I had to wait until I was a grown up and could make my own little meat gems.  Here’s my “go to” recipe for meatballs, which is simple and basic and begs for tweaking.  See my note below for ideas.

Meatballs

1 1/2 lb ground beef
1 t. ground pepper
1 t. garlic salt (or 1/2 t. powdered garlic plus 1/2 t. salt)
2 eggs
1 to 1 1/2 c. bread crumbs

Mix up all ingredients except for breadcrumbs until well combined.  Add bread crumbs 1/2 cup at a time until meat mixture starts to get firm.  Roll into 1 inch balls and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and bake in a preheated oven set at 450 degrees for 10 minutes.  Meatballs will not be cooked all the way through.  Remove from oven and place meatballs in large pot and cover with desired sauce (I’m a sauce-from-a-jar person, and usually use two 26 oz jars, but do whatever you like).  Simmer, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking for up to an hour.  (I usually go about ten minutes, because I’m impatient and who has an hour to let something simmer? Let’s get on with things!)

Serve with spaghetti, or in a bun for a meatball sub.  Makes 40 to 50 meatballs.

Note: This recipe makes so much we usually eat half and freeze half.  You can halve the recipe pretty easily, too, if you’re not into lots of leftovers. As far as tweaking goes, go wild.  Use half ground beef and half sausage, add a tablespoon of dried parsley, use Italian seasoned bread crumbs—be creative, because it’s all good.