Spaghetti and Meatballs

• servings: 10 servings
• active time: 30 minutes
• total time: 2 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients

2 boxes spaghetti (or pasta of choice)

1/4 cup olive oil (extra virgin)

6x 680mL Italian tomatoes (about 16 cups) (jarred/canned, strained)

1/4 cup tomato paste

4 garlic cloves (whole, peeled)

1 large carrot (peeled)

1/2 red bell pepper

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)

1 heapting tsp salt (more to taste)

fresh basil (chopped, for topping)

pecorino romano (grated, for topping)

1½ lb ground beef

¾ lb ground pork (or veal)

4 garlic cloves (minced)

1 large egg (beaten)

1/2 cup seasoned Italian breadcrumbs

1/2 cup parmesan cheese (grated, plus more for serving)

1/2 cup milk (2%)

1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley (chopped fine)

2 tbsp fresh basil (chopped fine)

1 tbsp onion powder

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp fennel (crushed)

1¼ tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

Directions

Begin by preparing the tomato sauce by grabbing a large deep pan and set to medium heat.

Add the olive oil, and once hot add the carrot and red bell pepper.

Sauté on medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes flipping over halfway. The goal here is to lightly brown the veggies to add flavour to the sauce as it cooks over the next 2 hours.

Reduce heat to low/medium and add the whole garlic cloves, dried oregano, and red pepper flakes.Saute for 1-2 minutes just until the garlic begins to brown. DO NOT burn the garlic.

Add the tomato paste and let cook for an additional 1-2 minutes, just until it changes to a deeper red color.

Add the can or jars of tomatoes to the pan. Once you have emptied the tomatoes into the pan make sure to add 2-3 tbsp of water to each can/jar and shake ensuring all tomatoes that are left on the sides get poured in the pan.

Bring the sauce to a light boil and simmer for 6-7 minutes.

Reduce heat to simmer, and let cook for 2 hours stirring every 30 minutes.

Now begin by preparing the meatballs.

To a large mixing bowl add all of the meatball ingredients.

Using kitchen gloves, gently mix until just combined.Sammy's Tips: try not to over-mix, as this will result in a tougher meatball. I also recommend frying one meatball in a small frying pan before rolling out all of them to ensure the mix has enough salt to your liking.

Roll the meatballs into 1 inch round balls and pop into your fridge to let chill until the sauce has finished cooking.

When the sauce needs about 15 minutes left to cook, add a large handful of fresh basil and salt. Stir and taste here in case you need to add more salt.

Remove your whole garlic cloves, red pepper, carrot, and basil from the sauce.

Add the uncooked meatballs to the tomato sauce and fully submerge the meatballs into the sauce.

Cover and let simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until just cooked through.

While the meatballs are cooking, cook the spaghetti according to packaging instrutions.

Once the meatballs are finished cooking, remove from the tomato sauce and set aside for a few minutes.

Add a couple big ladles of tomato sauce to the cooked spaghetti and toss to combine.

Add the meatballs on top of the bowl of spaghetti and pour over more of the tomato sauce.

Garnish with fresh basil and lots of pecorino romano cheese.

Serve right away and enjoy.