Spaghetti and Meatballs
I’ve been known to watch Bobby Flay’s Throwdown on occassion, mostly because few things delight me more than seeing fancy pants-trained Bobby beat down by little old ladies and their berry pies. It’s divine justice, it’s goodness prevailing, and it is the same principle that turns me into a crying fool whenever I see the cast of Slumdog Millionaire looking happily stunned and triumphant.
In the weeks after I saw the spaghetti and meatball episode (in which Bobby lost to Grandma Maroni’s 100-year-old recipe), I couldn’t stop thinking about the way the winning meatballs looked atop a twisty nest of spaghetti in a wide, white bowl, and topped with sauce. I couldn’t stop thinking about the fact that Grandma Maroni’s recipe called for four eggs to a pound of ground chuck. Four eggs.
So finally, after weeks of pining, I found the recipe online, put on my pink apron, and made these during Sunday night’s snowstorm. But I’m never making these again. Not because they aren’t good, but because they are too good. Something about the combination of the winter storm outside, snow piled on our second-story window ledges, plus a big bowl of spaghetti and meatballs inside eaten on the couch, equaled a complete lack of self-control. I wanted to say no to seconds, but I was powerless in the presence of these meatballs.
And so, never again. Or at least, not for a very, very long time.
The good news is these meatballs are delicious and I really loved the sauce (despite its shocking amount of olive oil). The bad news is the measurements for the dry ingredients are in weights. Who measures their onion in ounces? Well, Grandma Maroni, apparently. So in actuality, I didn’t make Grandma Maroni’s 100 year-old-recipe exactly, but I made a version of it, just guestimating my way through.
Grandma Maroni’s Meatballs and Sauce
from Food Network
Serves 8-10, or 4 people who want seconds…and maybe thirds
for the meatballs
1 pound ground chuck
4 ounces dried bread crumbs
4 large eggs
4 ounces whole milk
6 ounces grated Romano
3 ounces grated Spanish onion
2 ounces finely diced fresh garlic
2 ounces finely chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
2 ounces finely chopped fresh basil leaves (I omitted this — no fresh basil in March)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a baking sheet with olive oil cooking spray.
Mix all ingredients thoroughly in large bowl. If mixture seems a little loose add more bread crumbs. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to an hour.
Roll meatballs loosely about the size of a golf ball and place on baking sheet. Place into preheated oven for approximately 35 to 40 minutes, turning after 20 minutes.
for the sauce
6 ounces good olive oil, not extra-virgin
12 cloves garlic, finely sliced
1 large or 2 medium Spanish onions, finely diced
2 (28-ounce) cans imported crushed tomatoes
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon white or black pepper
1 large handful julienned fresh basil leaves (again, omitted)
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add oil. Once heated add the finely sliced garlic and onions to the pan. Cook over medium heat until soft and slightly brown. Next add the canned crushed tomatoes, salt and pepper and stir. Allow the sauce to come to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the julienned basil, if you have it.
Lisa (dinner party): Throwdown is such a strange, strange show. On one hand, it’s awkward when Bobby loses and the little Granny is like, “In your face!” But on the other hand, it’s kind of awful when he beats the mom-and-pop people.
The whole thing is kind of a lose-lose. It’s also so obvious to distinguish Bobby’s dish from his competitors. His always has chipotle or blue corn or some other Flay-esque ingredient while the other people just go the traditional (usually winning) route.
Wow. Can you tell I’ve thought about this show a lot?
What I really meant to say is that your meatballs look delicious (love the one stray strand of pasta) and I really covet that napkin.1 year ago
Lisa, You are so right on every count! You can always totally tell which dish is Bobby’s, which makes you wonder if the whole thing is sort of rigged, and it does seem DEVASTATING if he beats the hometown fave. Have you ever thought of moonlighting as a tv critic?
Oh, and the napkin was my first ever sewing project!1 year ago
rebecca: I am SO SAD that I don’t have a bowl of spaghetti in front of me right this minute.
And 4 eggs??? I didn’t even know that the meatballs could hold up with 4 eggs!! Do they become super fluffy??1 year ago
rebecca, i refrigerated the meatball mixture to help it hold together because it was pretty, shall we say, goopy. but the end result was meatballs that were very tender.1 year ago
Sara Rose: You winter lover, go ahead and fly on out here to Satan’s Arm Pit, so we can make this. I hate making meatballs but I love eating them! My mom always puts blue cheese in them. Totally amazing.1 year ago
Lisa (dinner party): Ha! I did do recaps on “Spain on the Road Again” for Delish. Let’s just say that hours upon hours of Gwyneth and Mario eating clams does equal entertainment.
I’d prefer watching little old ladies beat down Bobby Flay and his sassy test kitchen assistants any day.
I totally need meatballs for dinner now. And all I have is chicken.1 year ago
Betsy: So my favorite Italian eatery in Lake Tahoe goes one step further. The meatballs are shaped, rolled in panko and deep fried.1 year ago
Brenda Leyland: Sarah, You sure do have a way with words…. and with meatballs. I’m with you on the number of eggs for a pound of meat!!! (but I can only imagine how delishhh everything tasted)……
Sarah Rose says her mom puts blue cheese in her meatballs…. hey I’m for trying those too. Yum yum!1 year ago
Sara Rose: Brenda- My mom uses around 6 ounces of crumbled blue cheese or gorgonzola in hers- whatever she’s got around. Then she uses the rest in homemade blue cheese dressing for the salad she serves with the spaghetti and meatballs. It’s flat out fabulous. She also uses blue cheese in meatloaf.1 year ago
What about deep fried blue cheese meatballs??1 year ago
Melissa H: This looks great, and actually sounds really flavorful. My family recipe calls for chili sauce mixed in with the tomatoes, so my taste buds always think other peoples’ spaghetti tastes bland.
This looks great though! I’ve got to try it! (My husband isn’t a fan of the chili sauce spaghetti).1 year ago
I think last night I had a dream about adding a pound of hot Italian sausage to the meatballs and I liked the sound of that!1 year ago
Sara Rose: Deep fried blue cheese meatballs sound like this prego’s dream come true!1 year ago
Cassandra: I am invited for dinner tonight and the hostess is cooking talapia. Now how on earth am I supposed to want to eat that after seeing and reading about your spaghetti and meatballs? My Grandma Millie used the eggs in her receipe, but no milk. She also fried the meatballs instead of baking them and used the leftover drippings in her sauce.1 year ago
Cassandra, Yum, yum, yum!1 year ago
La Mexican Food Diva: I agree with Lisa. Perhaps I always cheer for the underdog, but I love it when Grandma wins. Also, for some odd reason, whenever good ‘ole Bobby uses chipotles and blue corn in his dishes, I feel that the ingredients of my native cuisine are getting somehow “Frankenstein-ized”.1 year ago
Liz: The sauce sounds fantastic…any suggestions for a vegetarian version of the meatballs, or is the concept of a truly good veg meatball just wishful thinking?1 year ago
liz, in the comments on this recipe at food network, i recall someone saying they made it with faux meat — some kind of tofu crumbles — and still thinking the result was delicious.1 year ago
Rebecca: I’m making turkey meatballs tonight, and I usually only add 1 egg + 1 egg white to my approx 1.2 lbs of meat!!! I feel very stingy!
Last week I did 2 eggs and they were superb.
Tonight, perhaps I will bump it up to 3 and refrigerate…but 4 eggs? 4 eggs just blows my mind! It’s like an urban legend or something!
Maybe I’ll get brave next week!1 year ago
hikkie: HAHA, I totally agree, At throwdowns, if Boby Flay beats someone he always looks like he feels so bad about it. Funny that he always makes the same 5 things with the same 5 ingredients though! Well, I guess he is consistent!
Classic grandma spaghetti meatballs are the best…but you can always add so many different twists to it!
We recently tried a fusion version - Chinese meatballs with wheat pasta. It’s light and yum. Check it out!
http://spaghettofu.blogspot.com/2009/05/fusion-debut-chinese-spaghetti.html
Thanks1 year ago