Meatballs in Giada's Sauce

When I started blogging, I began to explore new taste sensations, new culinary treats, and as a result, did not make many of the old favorites, as often, in the past. Meatballs were almost dropped when we cut back on our meat intake.  

One of my favorite dishes had been meatballs in many guises but good old Spaghetti and Meatballs led the pack.  Although, I would not call it a comfort food, it came close.  Pasta is always comforting and a tasty meatball only makes it better.

I am emptying my freezer and one of the items in it is three packages of chopped turkey.  One of them is being eaten, tonight,  thanks to Giada.

Pasta with Turkey Meatballs     Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup plain corn meal
• 2 tablespoons Rice milk
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 pound ground turkey 
• 1 onion, chopped in mini blender
• Salt and ground black pepper to taste
• 5 cups tomato sauce, recipe follows
• 1 pound pasta

Directions:

Meatballs

 Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large bowl add bread crumbs Rice milk and mix until well combined. 
Mix in eggs.

Add chopped turkey and gently combine, being careful not to overwork the meat. Season with salt and pepper. Shape into medium size balls.
Place meatballs on large cast iron pan or baking sheet with edges.
Place in oven and bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

Simple Tomato Sauce:

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 stalk celery, chopped

1carrot, chopped

salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

2 (32-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes

2 dried bay leaves

In a large pot, heat oil over medium high heat. 
Add onion and saute until soft and translucent, about 5 to 10 minutes.
Add celery and carrots and season with salt and pepper. Saute until all the vegetables are soft, about 5-10 minutes. 
Add tomatoes and bay leaves and simmer uncovered on low heat for 1 hour or until thick. Remove bay leaves and check for seasoning.

Giada blends her sauce to make it smoother but in this case, we like it a bit lumpy so I skipped that step.
I also put the meatballs in the sauce and cooked for 30 minutes of the hour to give the sauce more flavor.


Next time, I would add chopped carrots.

Check out the meatball and the pasta recipes at I Heart Cooking Clubs and eat hearty for weeks.

            

 
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