Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

We all have those days when we're craving spaghetti and meatballs...

 

Come on, don't lie...you know you do.

 

This recipe is a take on the traditional beef meatballs and pasta.

 

This recipe uses ground veal instead of beef and I used vegetable penne for my starch.

 

Make sure you chop the onion super small for the meatballs.

 

Really let the tomatoes soak in the hot, hot water and then soak in the ice water, it will make a difference in how easy or difficult peeling the tomatoes is.

 

And if you have them on hand, use fresh herbs...they always taste better.

 

 

 

 

1 lb. ground veal

1 onion, very finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, grated

1 egg white, lightly beaten

1 cup fresh white breadcrumbs

1/2 cup finely chopped fresh parsley

3 Tbs. finely chopped fresh oregano

cooking oil spray

3 lbs. ripe tomatoes

2 onions, finely sliced

1/2 cup tomato paste

1/2 tsp. sugar

11 oz. penne

 

 

 

 

Combine the ground veal, onion, half of the garlic, egg white, breadcrumbs, 2/3 of the parsley and 1 Tbs. oregano in a large bowl.

 

 

Season and mix well with your hands.

 

Shape into 36 small balls.

 

 

Spray a large frying pan with oil.

 

Cook a third of the meatballs over high heat for 4-5 minutes, or until browned, turning constantly to prevent the meatballs from sticking.

 

 

Remove from the pan and repeat with the remaining meatballs.

 

 

Score a cross in the base of each tomato and place in a heatproof bowl, cover with boiling water.

 

 

 

Leave for 1 minute, or until the skins start to come away.

 

 

Drain, plunge into a bowl of iced water, then peel away the skin and roughly chop the flesh.

 

 

 

Lightly spray the base of a large, deep saucepan.

 

Add the sliced onion and remaining garlic and cook over low heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly.

 

 

Add 2 Tbs. water, cover and cook gently for 5 minutes to soften the onion.

 

Stir in the tomatoes and tomato paste.

 

 

 

Cover and simmer for 10 minutes, uncover and simmer gently for 40 minutes.

 

 

Add the meatballs, cover and simmer for another 15-20 minutes, or until the meatballs are just cooked.

 

 

Add the sugar, remaining parsley and oregano and season well.

 

 

Cook the penne in a large pot of boiling, salted water until al dente, drain.

 

 

 

 Serve with the meatballs.

 

Cottage Pie

Cottage Pie.

 

A take on Shepherd's Pie, no less.

 

The only difference is that Shepherd's Pie is made with lamb mince and Cottage Pie is made with beef mince.

 

Both equally tasty.

 

For me, this recipe did not turn out at I had planned...I have to blame the baby on this one.

 

Poor little guy was sick and while this was only supposed to take 1 1/2 hours, at the most, it ended up taking me almost 3...

 

And I lopped off the tip of my pinky while peeling the parsnip and burnt my fingers draining the potatoes.

 

And I didn't get a chance to drain the meat as well as I would have.

 

Well, there are my excuses for the day, haha.

 

But, it didn't stop us from gobbling up our bowls when we finally sat down to eat!

 

 

 

2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 onions, chopped

2 carrots, diced

1 celery stick, diced

2 pounds ground beef

2 Tbsp. flour

1 1/2 cups beef stock

1 Tbsp. soy sauce

1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

2 Tbsp. tomato sauce

1 Tbsp. tomato paste

2 bay leaves

2 tsp. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

 

Topping:

1 pound potatoes, diced and peeled

13oz parsnips, diced and peeled

2 Tbsp. butter

1/2 cup milk

 

Preheat the oven to 350 and lightly grease a 2.5 liter ovenproof dish.

 

Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and cook the onion, carrot, and celery, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, or until softened.

 

Add the ground beef and cook for 7 minutes, then stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes.

 

 

Add the stock, soy sauce, Worcestershire, tomato sauce, tomato paste, and bay leaves and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

 

 

Leave to cool.

 

Remove the bay leaves and stir in the parsley.

 

To make the topping, boil the potato and parsnip in salted water for 15-20 minutes.

 

 

Drain, return to the pot and mash with the butter and milk.

 

Spoon the filling into the dish and spread the topping over top.

 

 

Bake for 25 minutes, or until golden.

 

Beef Stroganoff

Beef Stroganoff.

 

I can't tell you how many times I've made this recipe.

 

I always like to try different cookbooks and see which recipes I find the best.

 

To be honest, this is not the best one I have found, but it still turned out very yummy.

 

 

 

1 pound rump steak

cooking oil spray

1 onion, sliced

1/4 tsp. paprika

8oz mushrooms, halved (I used baby bellas)

2 Tbsp. tomato paste

1/2 cup beef stock

1/2 cup evaporated milk

3 tsp. cornflour

3 Tbsps. chopped fresh parsley


 

 

Remove any excess fat from the steak and slice into thin strips.

 

Cook in batches in a large, lightly greased frying pan over high heat, until just cooked.

 

Remove from the pan.

 

Lightly spray the pan and cook the onion, paprika, and mushrooms over medium heat, until the onion is soft.

 

Add the meat, tomato paste, stock, and 1/2 cup of water.

 

Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

 

In a small bowl, combine the evaporated milk and the cornflour.

 

Add to the pan and stir until the sauce boils and thickens.

 

Sprinkle with parsley.
 

 

 

Stuffed Chicken Breasts

This recipe may sound a little weird, but it actually turned out quite tasty.

 

I don't know if I should have used a different bread crumb because when I cut the chicken it sort of fell apart.

 

Now, that doesn't mean it didn't' taste very good.

 

My husband and I devoured the huge pieces of stuffed chicken.

 

 

You will need:

 

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, grated in

3oz cooked ham, finely chopped

1 green pepper, finely chopped

2 Tbsp. finely chopped black or green olives

1/3 cup grated Parmesan

6 chicken breasts

plain flour, to coat

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 1/2 cups dry breadcrumbs

1/4 cup olive oil

 

Heat the oil in a pan and add the onion, garlic, ham, and pepper.

 

 

 

 

Cook, stirring, over medium heat for 5 minutes, or until the onion is soft.

 

Remove and place in a bowl.

 

Add the olives and Parmesan.

 

 

 

Cut a deep pocket in the side of each chicken breast, cutting almost to the other side.

 

 

Fill each breast with the ham mixture and secure with toothpicks along the opening of the pocket.

 

Coat each breast with flour, shaking off any excess.

 

Dip into the beaten egg and the coat with breadcrumbs.

 

 

Heat the oil in a large pan and cook the chicken, in batches, over medium-high heat for 15-20 minutes, turning halfway through, until golden and cooked through.

 

 

To serve, remove the toothpicks, then cut diagonally into thin slices.