Monday, August 08, 2005, 11:51 AM // 12 comments

Looking for a great Italian meatball recipe?

If you're looking for a great Italian meatball recipe then wrap your lips these balls.

I've known Tom Hartman since first grade. That means we've been friends for a long time. Since childhood Tom has always come across as a "worldly" type of fellow. He's always been very knowledgeable in politics, sports, the arts, history, and music. Especially music. He and I have listened, enjoyed, and argued about music for thirty years.

Tom is also knows a lot about food. He lives in Philadelphia and enjoys eating out often. Name the food and Tom has tasted it somewhere in Philadelphia or New York or around the world (Tom travels a lot. When it comes to food -- Tom has tried it all including Indian, Chinese, Mexican, Thai, French, and Italian. Now, given his background, experience, and his fondness for food I value his opinion and his recommendations about such matters.

I told you about Tom so you'll understand my disbelief when he told me that my meatballs were the best he's ever eaten. My meatballs? Tom has eaten thousands of meatballs in hundreds of restaurants in and around Philadelphia, New York, and other places, yet my meatballs are his favorite, "...the best I've ever tasted." Wow, what a compliment. Thank you Tom.

So given my new found respect for my meatballs I want to share my recipe:

The Best Meatball Recipe
Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Ingredients
1 pound combined beef, veal, pork (must be fresh)
3 large eggs
1 cup grated Romano Locatelli Cheese
1 cup bread crumb
1 clove garlic - minced
1 teaspoon salt

Preparation
(All mixing is done be hand) In a large bowl mix beef/veal/pork with eggs. Then add bread crumb, cheese, and salt. Finally add minced garlic in stages. Add a little then mix. Add some more, then mix. This way all the garlic does not end up in one meatball. Now, it's time to roll up the balls. Average size is roughly 2 inches in diameter. I usually get around 18 to 20 meatballs per pound. IMPORTANT! Do not cook meatballs in your pasta sauce! Meatballs cooked in sauce loose their flavor. The real key to a tasty meatball is cooking the them in an oven. So, heat oven to 375. Place meatballs on a rack - then on a cookie tray. Bake for 12 minutes on one side then 10 minutes for the other.

I freeze the meatballs in bags and take out what I need per dinner. I just drop the meatballs into the sauce as if heats up.

Buon Appetito!

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12 Comments:

Blogger debbie koenig said...

Now I know what I'm having for dinner next time I come to your house...

12:59 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Last night I revisited The Godfather, one of my favorite all-time movies. The Sicilians have a great love for food, and it certainly shows in all the scenes from both the restaurants and parties.
In the scene where Michael is being taught to make good sauce, we see Sonny Corleone and his button men sitting around a table, down to their tee-shirts, chowing down on a huge plate of spaghetti and meatballs. Don Vito Corleone has been shot, and the men have “gone to the mattresses.” It brought to mind the fact that I see a lot of requests for meatballs, and inspired today’s post
I always make it a habit to check AW Stats each day to see what folks are searching for. It is my intent to provide what folks need and want, not just off the wall recipe that I think is great. I fear I have a very eclectic taste in food - one day Mexican, the next Italian, and maybe the next a great dish from Morocco. Drives Rosie crazy. I just like variety on food. Pretty simple, eh?
Regardless, one of the top things searched for on this site is meatballs - meatballs in every shape and form, from Italian to spicy to Swedish. Presented here today is an article by Paul Altobelli, who advocates cooking the meatballs separate from the sauce, which is how I have always done unless making a specific side dish for a party. The old Coon learns something new each day!

Enjoy…

7:06 PM  
Blogger Ellen said...

Yum! This is very close to how my ex-MIL taught me to make meatballs. She cooked them stovetop in olive oil, but I bake mine. I think the cheese is the key. She adds some dried parsley as well.

11:19 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi

I tried your meatball recipe over the weekend and must thank you.

I have been trying to perfect my meatballs for 20 years and you really
helped me to put an end to my ordeal.

Thanks again.

Lisa D.

7:36 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

hi, i’m from europe and know very well italian cuisine. this dish, however, can not be found in europe. Must be italian-AMERICAN or something.

So thanks very much for the recipe, i will try this out tomorrow.

11:47 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

These meatballs were SOOOOO easy! And they tasted phenomenal! My family gobbled them up, I am definitely making this again!

THANK YOU!

5:59 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I substituted with parmesan and used a sea salt grinder to ligtly salt the meatballs after they were rolled instead of adding tha table spoon of salt that the recipe called for....turned out great. Next time I am adding finely chopped onion and green pepper...:D

6:00 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I think I didn't have enough egg in my previous meatball recipe!!! Thank you..... I added fresh parsley.....Yum!!!

6:01 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I think I didn't have enough egg in my previous meatball recipe!!! Thank you..... I added fresh parsley.....Yum!!!

6:01 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I made a minor change to your recipe. Instead of veal (too costly) I used 1 pound of Jimmy Dean regular sausage and the meatballs were easy a great.

Thanks for the recipe.

6:01 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Dear Paul,

How’s it going?

I just wanted to say thanks for a terrific meatball recipe...which I found at ezine articles on the internet.

Today I learned that my sister-in-law’s Mom makes the “best” meatballs – and that my brother-in-law has been known to hoard them!

That being said, I’m up against some stiff competition today...

Anyway, wishing you and yours the very merriest of Christmases and a Happy NY!

6:03 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Meatballs Go Great When Golfing

Apr 10, 2006 - Linknet Entertainment - This doesn't have much to do with golf, but it sounds like a great recipe anyway! Great before golfing, after golfing, or even if you never play golf.

6:08 PM  

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Paul Altobelli is a veteran Internet, marketing and technology professional with considerable expertise in search engine marketing, web site development, design, implementation and project management. [more]

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