Perfect Meatballs

I'm lucky enough to have family and friends that are enablers of my love-to-cook addiction. One of the best is my mother-in-law, who always passes on the issues of Food & Wine, Food Network Magazine, Bon Apetit, Better Homes & Garden, etc. I even graduated to getting my very own subscription to Bon Apetit this past year!

I firmly believe there are certain recipes everyone should have in their back pocket: chocolate chip cookies, pancakes, beef stew (or vegetable, for all my vegetarian friends), spaghetti and meatballs, a basic yeast bread, biscuits, and a good drink.

For years, I had used a basic, easy meatball recipe, but I always felt it was lacking because the recipe called for first baking the meatballs, and then adding them to the sauce right before serving. This bothered me, because my however-slight-it-may-be Italian heritage kept nagging me that the proper way to cook meatballs is IN the sauce. It also called for a package of dry onion soup mix, which almost always has MSG in it, and which therefore usually gives me a migraine. We've also moved away from the packaged, supermarket foods and more towards local, as-close-to-the-way-nature-made-it foods, and this recipe no longer sat well with me.

The hunt was on, and it took nearly 2 years before I found what I was looking for when it happened to arrive in my mailbox.

Enter Bon Apetit, October 2010 and an article by Molly Wizenberg, "In search of the perfect meatball". With an opening like that, you can't help but have high hopes, and (if you're me), a bit of fear that it can never live up to what you've imagined in your head. I am happy to report that my hopes were not only exceeded, but pretty much reached a level of meatball-bliss I've never experienced before. The difference in this recipe comes from a few different sources, in my opinion: the combination of beef and pork (my previous recipe used only beef); the freshly shredded parmesan; and a technique in the article that is referred to as "The Claw".

Yes, I am this excited about spaghetti and meatballs.

The best part of this recipe? After the first time, it takes only a few minutes to put the ingredients together and have dinner on the table. It also reheats extremely well, which is a huge bonus for all the working parents out there. This is definitely a kid-friendly meal, but it's also a perfect meal to make when you're having friends over and would rather focus on the conversation and wine instead of the stove.

Enjoy!

Perfect Meatballs
(Adapted from Bon Apetit, October 2010; original recipe appears to be from Jordi Viladas, one of the owners of Cafe Lago in Seattle. Article written by Molly Wizenberg of Orangette.)

1c. fresh breadcrumbs
1/3c. whole milk
8oz. ground beef (15% fat)
8oz. ground pork
1c. freshly ground Parmesan (the original recipe says not grated; I used the fine section on my basic cheese grater and they have turned out great)
1/3c. finely chopped Italian parsley
1tsp. salt
1/4tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 large eggs
2 large garlic cloves, pressed
1 pound spaghetti (regular, angel hair, capellini - anything will work)

Combine breadcrumbs and milk in a small bowl and stir until evenly moistened; set aside and let stand 10 minutes.

Place beef and pork into large bowl and break into small chunks, working the meat as little as possible. Add the parmesan, parsley, salt, and peper.

Whisk eggs together with garlic and add to meat mixture.

Using hands, squeeze excess milk from breadcrumbs, but reserve milk; add breadcrumbs to meat mixture. Make a "claw" with your hand, as if you were trying to palm a basketball; quickly and gently mix until evenly combined - do NOT overmix. (If you handle the meat too much, it will become tough when you cook it.) Chill at least 15 minutes.

Bring a pot of approximately 60oz. of your favorite sauce to a simmer. Moisten hands with reserved milk (I skipped this part and had no problem) and form meat mixture into balls approximately the size of a golf or ping-pong ball. Arrange in a single layer in the pot (again - I had mine in more than one layer, and it was fine) and bring back to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until cooked through, 15-20 minutes.

Cook spaghetti in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente (the side of the box will tell you how long, depending on the type of pasta).

Drain; serve up the amount that you want, top it with the number of meatballs you want, and welcome to Meatball Heaven.