The Most Tender Meatballs Ever

Did you ever find yourself ridiculously slow to realize something simple? For years I've made my meatloaf, not with the standard high fat meatloaf mix but with extra lean ground sirloin. And the way I kept my meatloaf moist and juicy was by loading it with veggies. Yet somehow, it's taken me years to come to the same realization with meatballs.

Until I met Brian, I was making meatballs using a typical recipe, adding a little onion and garlic for flavor and spooning on a little sauce. I thought they were fine but he is ultra sensitive and only likes extremely tender meatballs. Needless to say, he felt that mine were not.  Hmm. At first I didn't want to add chunks of things that I thought would detract from the softness but it wasn't until I was stirring a Bolognese sauce one day that the idea came to me. To make the Bolognese sauce (see the recipe here), I pureed the vegetables and it now hit me that I could do the same with the meatballs. Duh!

Since I prefer not to fry unless absolutely essential, I baked these meatballs and then gave them a slow simmer in the tomato sauce to absorb extra flavor. The difference was immediately obvious to Brian and to me. These meatballs were melt-in-your-mouth tender and far more flavorful than any I'd made before. So, OK, a little slow to arrive but I'm there now. Enjoy!

Ingredients
1 lb. Lean ground beef
1 Large onion, peeled
1 Stalk celery
1/4 Cup fresh parsley
1 Carrot, peeled
4 Cloves garlic, peeled
1 Egg
1/4 Cup breadcrumbs
1/4 Cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 Cup Milk
1/2 Teaspoon salt
1/2 Teaspoon pepper
4 Cups tomato sauce (homemade or your favorite store bought)
Handful of fresh basil, chopped

Formed and ready for the oven.

In a food processor or small chopper, puree the onion, carrot, celery, parsley and garlic until finely minced. In a large bowl, mix together the vegetable puree, beef, egg, breadcrumbs, cheese, milk, seasoning and 1/4 cup of the tomato sauce until thoroughly combined. Form meatballs using your hands or a scoop. I used a 1 oz. scoop which made the job easy and the balls uniform in size. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and roast in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes.

Roasted meatballs

Heat the remainder of the tomato sauce in a pot on the stove.  When the meatballs are roasted, add to the tomato sauce, cover and simmer on low heat for an additional 30 minutes. Serve over pasta and top with the fresh basil and additional Parmesan cheese, if desired. Makes approximately 4 servings.