One meatball, two sauces.

I love meatballs. Fresh, homemade meatballs. Not the frozen processed plastic golf balls you get at sub shops and cheaper Italian restaurants. I also love that they are easy to throw together, all the GP's love them, and they are dirt cheap to make.

Recently my husband found out he will be working in Tampa for the next couple of years, which means we will pack up and move again this summer. This way he can be closer to work, and we can have better schools for our children. Win, win. A move, plus summer time means our budget will be tight for the next few months, so I just love when I can find cheap eats that still taste delish.

That is where meatballs come in. Ground beef is always cheap and can be used in so many ways. My favorite is a good juicy hamburger fresh from the grill. But, I don't have one at the moment, and no way in heck am I using the community grill at our complex. It's rusted, sitting uncovered under a tree where birds nest, and I've seen my fair share of their presents left behind on it. It baffles my mind that people actually use that grill.

So burgers are out, but one of these days I will break down and purchase a cast iron grill pan so I can do them on the stove top. Especially since when we move I will finally have a gas stove. Which I am super excited about!!! Until then, I'll make meatballs.

I have yet another recipe I wanted to try from The Pioneer Woman for her BBQ Meatballs, but when my husband heard meatballs that I wasn't putting in marinara, he asked me to make his favorite Honey Garlic Meatballs.

I usually make them New Years Eve. My family likes to do a buffet of appetizers that we nosh on all night. The meatballs are always gone first. The recipe I used for the meatballs was a Cooking Light recipe for Beef Meatballs but I was out of eggs and Ree's doesn't use eggs so I went with hers.

I have to say I had mixed feelings about the final result. I only cooked mine for 30 minutes and they could have gone 5 minutes less. I did however love the method of rolling them in flour and briefly browning on top of the stove and that tangy BBQ sauce that covered them. Usually I just bake them meatballs in a hot oven and glaze them in the honey garlic sauce, but this time I did like Ree and poured it over top and baked. They were so tasty. But again, they were a bit over cooked and needed a bit of garlic to give them some umph for me.

All in all, the recipe is easy, cheap, and quick to come together. I think adding a bit of garlic and cutting back on the baking to 25 minutes would give me a much tastier ball - o -meat. Either way, you can't go wrong, my GP's gobbled up the honey garlic before the BBQ. Can't say I blame them, they were my favorite too!

I served them over jasmine rice because that is what I had on hand. Ree suggests egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or crusty French bread. The honey garlic meatballs are great little party appetizers too. Like I mentioned before, I didn't have egg so I used Ree's meatball recipe for the browning and baking but I'm giving the original recipe for how I make them.
Let's get cooking......

After you mix up the meatballs you pop them in the freezer for 5 minutes, then roll them in flour.

Then fry baby fry, or is it saute baby saute? Or brown baby brown?

Then pop them into a baking dish.

Then give em' some sauce and pop them in the oven.

Check them at 25 minutes.....mmmmm, look at those babies. Resist the urge to pop one in your mouth, those suckers are HOT!!!

And serve anyway you like, over rice, mashed taters, as a sandwich, or just by themselves. Just make them.

I'm giving both original recipes, but feel free to mix it up and use Ree's recipe for meatballs with the honey garlic sauce, you won't be disappointed.

BBQ Meatballs


FOR MEATBALLS
1 1/2 pound Ground Beef (I used 2 pds)
3/4 cups Oats (I used 1 cup of quick oats)
1 cup Milk (I used a bit more I think 1 1/4)
3 Tablespoons Very Finely Minced Onion (I used 4)
1 1/2 teaspoon Salt (I used 2)
Plenty Of Ground Black Pepper, to taste
FOR COOKING MEATBALLS
1 cup All-Purpose Flour (coating For Frozen Meatballs)
Canola Oil
FOR SAUCE (I  cut this in half since I was making half a batch of honey garlic)
1 cup Ketchup
2 Tablespoons Sugar
3 Tablespoons Vinegar
2 Tablespoons Worcestershire
4 Tablespoons (to 6 Tablespoons) Onion
1 dash Tabasco

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine all meatball ingredients. Roll into medium-small balls and place on a cookie sheet. Place sheet in freezer for five minutes.
After 5 minutes, remove meatballs from freezer and immediately dredge in unseasoned flour.
Brown meatballs in canola oil until just brown. Place into a baking dish.
Combine all sauce ingredients. Pour over meatballs and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. (I cooked mine for 30 and probably would only go 25 next time, maybe my oven is hotter?)


Honey Garlic Meatballs 

1 1/2 pounds ground round
1/4 cup (1 ounce) finely shredded fresh Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup tomato sauce
1 teaspoon dry mustard
3/4 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon Freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
2 garlic cloves, finely minced, pressed, or grated on a microplane zester
Cooking spray
Sauce:
2 Tbsp. butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup ketchup
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup soy sauce (I use Lite)

Preheat oven to 400°.

Combine the ground round, parm cheese, breadcrumbs, parsley, tomato sauce, mustard, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper and 2 cloves of minced garlic in a bowl and mix well.

Prepare a broiler pan by coating with cooking spray. Shape mixture into 30 (1 1/2-inch) meatballs. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until done. Drain the grease and set them aside.

While meatballs cook make your sauce.

Melt butter in saucepan and saute garlic until it is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add ketchup, honey and soy sauce. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer five minutes. Add meatballs to sauce. Return to a boil and simmer uncovered 5 until sauce glazes meatballs.


Now.....

Obsessing over stuffed peppers.......

I just can't do it.  No matter how hard I've tried with Photoshop, I can't make this picture of my stuffed peppers look as good as they tasted.  I've tried for over an hour, but there is only so much a chick can do with her little point and click camera (Cannon or Nikon fairy,if you are out there, please pay me a visit with one of your beautiful camera's...... I promise to love it, care for it, and put it to good use.) 


My husband said, "quit obsessing, no one eats the photo, just post your recipe."  So as hard as it is for me, I will do just that.  

Tonight was my husbands birthday and he requested stuffed peppers.  We already did the night out on the town this past weekend so tonight he wanted some homemade comfort food.  These are one of his favorites and I rarely make them.  Maybe it's because the little GP's only eat the inside and leave the poor lonely pepper on the plate,  maybe it's because they are pretty labor intensive, or maybe  I am so busy finding new recipes to try that I've over looked them.  What ever the case, these are worth the steps involved, at least my hubby thinks so.  And now that I've reminded him how good they are, I can bet I'll be making them a lot more often.


 Melissa's Stuffed Peppers


  6     green bell peppers

  1     can  tomato paste -- (6 oz)

  6     oz  water (I use the tomato paste can and stir the water to get the last bits of paste)

  1     tablespoon  brown sugar

  1     tablespoon  Worcestershire sauce

  2     tablespoons  vegetable oil

  1     cup  finely chopped yellow onions

  1     tsp  dried oregano

  1     tablespoon  minced garlic

  1     pound  lean ground beef

  1     teaspoon  salt

  1/2  teaspoon  ground black pepper

  1/2  cup  grated Parmesan cheese

  2     cups  cooked long or medium-grain white rice

  2     cans  stewed tomatoes (I prefer DelMonte and I whirl them in my food processor to make them smooth) or you can use 2 1/2 cups of your favorite tomato sauce

 1/2   cup  shredded mild flavored cheese like mozzarella -- monterey jack/colby, or a mild cheddar (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Rinse peppers under cold water. Slice the top 1/4 inch off each pepper; remove seeds and membranes. Chop edible part of tops to equal 1 cup chopped peppers, and set aside. If the peppers won't stand up straight, take a small slice off the bottom with a paring knife to make a flat surface, try to remove as little as possible.   In a large pot of boiling water, parboil the peppers until just tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to drain on either a wire rack or paper towels.  If you don't have your rice already cooked, you could use this pepper water to cook your rice in.  I've used it for instant rice when I didn't want to dirty another pot.

Combine tomato paste, water, Worcestershire sauce, and brown sugar in a small bowl; set aside.

In a large saute pan or skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and chopped bell pepper tops, cook, stirring, until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the beef, garlic, salt, black pepper, and  cook until the meat is browned, stirring with a heavy wooden spoon to break up the lumps, about 6 minutes. *Very important, remove pan from heat and drain any visible fat from the pan, then return it to the heat. Otherwise you will have greasy peppers.  Add the rice, parmesan cheese, and tomato paste mixture, stir well. Remove from the heat and adjust the seasoning, to taste.  Depending on your cheese and tomato paste you may need a bit more salt.

Spray with a casserole or baking dish with Pam or lightly oil, then pour in stewed tomatoes or tomato sauce.  Depending on the size of you pan, you may not need all of it.  Pour in enough sauce so that it comes up to the bottom of the pepper about a half of an inch.  Set the parboiled peppers into the prepared pan so they are evenly spaced and surrounded by sauce..  Stuff the bell peppers with the rice mixture. Spread a spoonful of the sauce over the top of each pepper.   Bake until the peppers are very tender and the filling is heated through, about 30 to 35 minutes. Spoon a little tomato sauce over each stuffed pepper and sprinkle with shredded cheese; bake 8 to 10 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.

Serve the peppers with spoonfuls of tomato sauce from pan. Makes 6 servings.

Meatloaf, smeatloaf, double-beatloaf. I *love* meatloaf.

No need for a screw driver and plumber's helper, my family will shove it in all by themselves.  My daughter will love that.  I think I will keep that statement.  She reads my blog now, and I hear "Mommmmmmm" when she thinks I'm embarrassing her.  Is it bad that I find joy in that?


Anywho, back to cookin'.  My family loves meatloaf, well this meatloaf anyway.  In fact they love it so much when I turned around to get my picture ready for the blog, there were only these two, puny, little pieces left.   From now on nobody eats till I get my blog shot. 


This really is a terrific meatloaf, dare I say the "Perfect Meatloaf"  since that is the name of the cookbook I found  this recipe in by Pam Anderson. She was the executive editor for Cooks Illustrated at one time.  She wrote a cookbook called "The Perfect Recipe." She has some near perfect recipes in her book.  If you haven't picked it up you should.  Not only is this little gem in there, but a recipe for Prime Rib where you dry age the roast in the frig, turns out "perfect" every time.  Her apple pie filling in the cookbook is also my families favorite for apple pie.

With this meatloaf I served another Cooking Light recipe, Asiago, Potato, and Bacon Gratin.  The perfect meal to get you ready for bathing suit weather.......that my friends, is sarcasm.  Hey, I served it with broccoli, not that the guys touched it.  That just left more for us girls. 

These potatoes are really rich tasting but you only use 1% milk.  I did not follow the recipe completely, do I ever?  No, not usually.  When I came to the part where you coat the shallots (oh I didn't have shallots so I used a small onion and 2 cloves of garlic since I doubled the recipe) with flour and then add the milk, it turned into a disaster.  I can do a roux and add liquid without lumps, but for some reason since there wasn't any fat on the shallots I could not get rid of them.   It was so lumpy I had to toss it and do it the easy way with cornstarch as the thickener.  Just added half the amount they call for in place of the flour and stirred it into the cold milk.   Easy and lump~less..  

Since bathing suit weather is upon us here in Florida, I ditched the bacon on the meatloaf.  I've made this meatloaf a million times and it's good with or without the bacon.  I think I prefer it without the bacon because it's a little more healthy.  Hmmm, maybe I shouldn't have sauteed the onions in a little bacon fat if I was going for healthy???  I don't care...... "bacon, is good for me."  ....anyone see that episode of Trading Spouses?

So here they are, my families favorite meatloaf and scalloped potatoes (well the light version anyway), hopefully they will be yours too. ;}
                    

 The Perfect Meatloaf (Bacon-Wrapped Meatloaf with Brown Sugar-Ketchup Glaze)

Brown Sugar Ketchup Glaze

1/4 cup ketchup or chili sauce

2 tablespoons light or dark brown sugar

2 teaspoons cider or white vinegar ( I used cider)

Meat Loaf

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon dried thyme (I use a smidge less)

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black paper

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

2 teaspoons Worchestershire sauce

1/4 teaspoon hot red pepper sauce

1/2 up milk, buttermilk or low-fat plain yogurt

2 pounds meat-loaf mix (2 parts ground chuck, 1 part ground veal, 1 part ground pork) 

2/3 cups crushed saltine crackers (about 16) or quick oatmeal or 1 1/3 cups fresh bread crumbs

1/3 cup minced parsley

6 ounces thin-sliced bacon

Glaze: Mix all ingredients and set aside. (Make extra glaze, it’s better than plain ol' ketchup)

Meatloaf: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat oil in a medium skillet.  Add onions and garlic, saute until softened, about 5 minutes; set aside to cool.

Mix eggs with thyme, salt and pepper, mustard, Worcestershire, hot sauce, and milk or yogurt. In a large bowl add egg mixture to the ground chuck, pork, and veal. Next add oatmeal or crackers, which ever you prefer, parsley, cooked onion and garlic; mix with a fork until evenly blended and meat mixture does not stick to the bowl. (If mixture does stick, add additional milk, a couple tablespoons at a time and continue stirring (until mixture stops sticking).

Turn the meat mixture onto a work surface. With wet hands, pat mixture into a loaf approximately 9x5 inches.

To bake free-form: Cover a wire rack with foil, prick the foil in several places with a fork to allow drainage. Place rack on a shallow roasting pan lined with foil for easy cleanup. Set formed loaf on rack. Brush loaf all over with glaze, then arrange the bacon slices, crosswise, over the loaf. Overlap them slightly and tuck under the loaf to prevent curling. (Free - form is the only way to go!)

Bake loaf until bacon is crisp and loaf registers 160F. This will take about an hour. Cool for at least 20 minutes. Slice and Serve.

NOTES : Skip bacon and use this alternative way to cook:  Adjust the oven racks to the upper (about 4-inches away from broiler elements) and middle positions and heat the broiler. Transfer the meat mixture to the prepared baking sheet and shape it into a 9- by 5-inch loaf. Broil on the upper rack until well browned, about 5 minutes. Brush 2 tablespoons of glaze over the top and sides of the loaf and then return to the oven and broil for another 2 minutes.

Transfer the meatloaf to the middle rack and brush with the remaining glaze. Change the oven temperature to bake at 350 degrees and bake the meatloaf for 40 to 45 minutes, until cooked through. Transfer the meatloaf to a cutting board and tent with foil. Let it rest for 20 minutes. Slice and serve, passing the cooked glaze at the table.

Recipe Source: adapted  from Pam Anderson "The Perfect Recipe Cookbook"

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Asiago, Potato, and Bacon Gratin

• 1 1/2  pounds  peeled Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
• 1  teaspoon  salt, divided
• Cooking spray
• 2  tablespoons  minced shallots ( I subbed in onion and a clove of garlic when I'm out of shallot)
• 1/4  cup  all-purpose flour
• 2  cups  1% low-fat milk, divided
• 3/4  cup  (3 ounces) grated Asiago cheese
• 1/4  cup  chopped fresh chives
• 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 4  bacon slices, cooked and crumbled
• 1/4  cup  (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350°.

Place potatoes in a large saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes or until potatoes are almost tender. Drain. Sprinkle potatoes evenly with 1/4 teaspoon salt; set aside and keep warm. (Okay, okay, I didn't follow this step either, I salted the water instead.)

Heat a medium saucepan coated with cooking spray over medium heat. Add shallots; cook 2 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Sprinkle flour over shallots. Gradually add 1/2 cup milk, stirring with a whisk until well blended. Gradually add remaining 1 1/2 cups milk, stirring with a whisk. Cook over medium heat 9 minutes or until thick, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; stir in 3/4 teaspoon salt, Asiago, chives, pepper, and bacon.

Arrange half of potato slices in an 8-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Pour half of cheese sauce over potato slices. Top with remaining potato slices and cheese sauce; sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake at 350° for 35 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and lightly browned.

Adapted from Cooking Light

Stir fry Sunday

Beef-Broccoli Lo Mein  (well sort of.)

First let me say, I am not a food stylist.  I am not a photographer.  I am not a chef.  I am a total amateur at all three.  In fact I am such an amateur that my first day of food blogging I forgot to check my camera and make sure it had a battery.  I was so excited, my first recipe entry into my new blog, went to take my first photo and of course my camera was dead.  So this lovely photo is brought to you by my husbands Blackberry (thanks T! ♥)  Not the prettiest photo, but this blog is a work in progress.  

Now on to the recipe...........

Today was a lazy day, the only thing lazier than the day was me. I wanted to make something quick to feed my little guinea pigs (who from this post forward I will affectionately refer to as the GPs, my daughter will be so pleased.) Now, I mean guinea pigs in the nicest way possible.  I really do have the best family that anyone who likes to experiment with recipes could have.  My husband and youngest are always willing to try new things, my older daughter and son, not so much. 

My family loves Chinese and one of their favorites is lo mein.  I'm always on the hunt for a good lo mein recipe.  Tonight I think I found it. Beef-Broccoli Lo Mein from Cooking Light, October 2003.  Now before you run away screaming about hating broccoli, no need to fear, there is no broccoli here.  Hmmm, funny.   

I love broccoli, my daughters love broccoli, the men in my life HATE broccoli.  I planned to cook it separately but my grocery store only had the prepackaged stuff today.  I hate prepackaged produce.  Especially when it is turning brown inside the package.  How I wish I still had Wegmans nearby.

So, since I wasn't using broccoli, I figured why not add some peppers and onions.  Not that the two picky GPs like peppers or onions, but I solved that problem by making two separate batches.  Which I would have done anyway because I doubled the recipe.  I also doubled the sauce. I know Cooking Light is trying to keep the dish lighter and a little more healthy by cutting down on the sodium/fat/calories, but when I was reading the reviews of the dish others stated there just wasn't enough sauce. So I doubled it.  I'm glad I did.   It was the perfect amount. 

Doubling the sauce and omitting the broccoli wasn't my only change.  I also changed up the order in which I cooked the stir fry.  I started with the meat first.  A quick saute and then off the heat and into a bowl. Make sure your pan is nice and hot so you can get some good caramelization.  No one likes grey meat.  It isn't pretty and it most certainly is not tasty.  Oh and you can sub any cut of beef you would normally grill or pan fry.  You could even use chicken, or do an all veg, it's your lo mein, add what you want no one is judging you. 

After the meat was done, I added the onion and peppers to the pan, then the ginger/garlic for 30 seconds, then the sauce. After the sauce the noodles joined the pot, and then the meat.  Quick toss around to coat everything and it's dinner time!

Once prepped this dish came together in about 10 minutes.  All in all this recipe is a definite keeper. The sauce has a nice balance of flavor.  A little heat, a little sweet, a little salty.  It all works perfectly together.  My daughter said "it doesn't taste exactly like the Chinese place, maybe a little better."  Coming from the pickiest of all the GPs, I'd say that was a pretty nice compliment.  

So after that long drawn out post, I give you Beef-Broccoli Lo Mein (sort of)

Beef-Broccoli Lo Mein

Printer Friendly Recipe

4  cups  hot cooked spaghetti (about 8 ounces uncooked pasta)

1  teaspoon  dark sesame oil

1  tablespoon  peanut oil

1  tablespoon  minced peeled fresh ginger

4  garlic cloves, minced

3  cups  chopped broccoli (or 1 green pepper like I used)

1 1/2  cups  vertically sliced onion

1  (1-pound) flank steak, trimmed and cut across the grain into long, thin strips

3  tablespoons  low-sodium soy sauce

2  tablespoons  brown sugar

1  tablespoon  oyster sauce

1  tablespoon  chile paste with garlic

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain. Combine pasta and sesame oil, tossing well to coat.

While pasta cooks, heat peanut oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ginger and garlic; sauté 30 seconds. Add broccoli and onion; sauté 3 minutes. Add steak, and sauté 5 minutes or until done. Add pasta mixture, soy sauce, and remaining ingredients; cook 1 minute or until lo mein is thoroughly heated, stirring constantly.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1 1/3 cups)

Nutritional Information

Calories: 327 (26% from fat)

Fat: 9.3g (sat 3g,mono 3.6g,poly 1.6g)

Protein: 21.7g

Carbohydrate: 39.1g

Fiber: 2.9g

Cholesterol: 36mg

Iron: 3.6mg

Sodium: 382mg

Calcium: 47mg

Marion Winik, Cooking Light, OCTOBER 2003