Meatballs in Marinara Sauce with Fake-Out "Spaghetti"

Annnd, we're back. Charles is in London for work (many sad faces :( ), the busy time of cleaning, and laundering, and packing is over, and I have endless free time on my hands (never a good thing :P). Pictures will be posted once I locate my dumb camera.

Today's recipe! : Meatballs in a Marinara Sauce with Fake-Out "Spaghetti"

This is adapted from a marinara-meatball recipe I've been using for quite a while that always comes out AMAZING. P.S. It's even better leftover.

Also, marinara is just delicious.

Ingredients:

Meatballs:
1 lb. lean ground beef (or pork, or a mixture, if you prefer it)
1 cup parmesan cheese, finely grated
1/2 cup flax seed meal
1 egg
1/2 t. garlic powder
Salt & pepper to taste

Sauce:
2 T. olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
5 cloves of garlic, minced
2 28-ounce cans of whole, peeled tomatoes (San Marzanos are THE BEST for this)
1/4 packed cup of fresh basil leaves (at least)
Salt & pepper to taste

Instructions:

Heat 2 T. olive oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Sautee onion until translucent and cooked through. Add garlic and sautee until fragrant.


Add tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Allow to simmer (not boil--you will have sauce EVERYWHERE if it boils), covered, for 30 minutes (or more).


While the sauce is simmering, combine meatball ingredients in a medium bowl. Set in the fridge until chilled.

After the sauce has simmered, roll the meatball mixture into 1-inch diameter balls (this is easier after the mixture has chilled) and add into the pot of sauce. Once all the meat mixture has been added, allow the sauce and meatballs to simmer for 30 more minutes, uncovered. Make sure to gently stir occasionally so all meatballs are equally covered by sauce.


Add the fresh basil at the end of the cooking process, about 10 minutes before serving.

Fake-Out Spaghetti!

Ingredients:

2 T. olive oil
3 medium zucchini
Salt & pepper to taste

Time to test out your knife skills! Cut off the ends of the zucchini and julienne the squash lengthwise.


Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add zucchini and cook in batches until tender (and spaghetti-like). Salt and pepper lightly, and serve. Cover in meatball and sauce mixture. Top with parmesan cheese! Yum yum!