Meatball Mania

Ok...so I am not a huge meatball kind of person, but William Sonoma had a cooking class all about it so I attended. I did learn a few things, and am glad I went. You can make meatballs 3 ways: fry, bake, or simmer directly in tomato sauce. But what I picked up for myself is that I can made a big batch of meatballs, have some for dinner now, and then freeze for later. I tried simmering the meatballs (they come out so tender), then after dinner lightly fried the rest just to get them brown and threw them in the freezer. On a busy day when I do not have time to cook, I will pop them in the oven at 375F for 10-12 min on each side and presto...dinner is on the table.

I am using a recipe my friend gave me at work and they are delicious

3 pieces Tuscany bread (crust removed) or any bread on hand
1 c. Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1 onion, finely chopped
3-5 cloves garlic, minced
1/8c. parsley
1 lb. ground beef or veal
1 egg
salt and pepper to taste
                                                      1/2 c. Parmesan cheese, grated

1. Soak the bread in milk for a few minutes while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. Later squeeze the excess milk out from the bread and crumble. I use the same milk (and a little more if needed) and add the bread crumbs stir until you get a paste-like mixture.
2. Saute onion in olive oil until clear and tender, add garlic and parsley saute for a min or so.
3. Combine meat, salt, pepper, egg, Parmesan cheese, onion mixture, crumbled bread and breadcrumbs, mix gently until combined.
4. Rinse hands with water but do not dry them. Shape the meat into 2-inch balls, rolling them lightly between moistened palms (this helps the meat from sticking to your fingers).
5. In saucepan, heat up tomato sauce of your choice until lightly boiling, add desired amount of meatballs, decrease the heat to a simmer and cook about 20min.
6. In a frying pan, heat up some canola oil and brown meatballs, they do not have to be fully cooked....they will be going in the freezer and reheated later. If you do want them cooked, cook until brown on all sides about 15 min. I sandwich them between paper towels after to soak up the excess oil.

At William-Sonoma we also made Moroccan-styel meatballs with mint leaves, cumin and cinnamon...the taste combination was pretty interesting and good!
http://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/moroccan-style-meatballs.html?cm_src=RECIPESEARCH