Saving Money, Part 3

So we covered small appliances...and I promised you the killer meatball recipe...so here it is...I wrote it up on facebook a while back and now am copying and pasting it here!

Killer Meatballs... 
Ok, well they don't "kill" anyone, but this is what I did to make probably the BEST meatballs I have ever had the other night... and I grew up in a neighborhood where my neighbors from Naples made some of the best food anywhere...and this was just like being back in the 'hood shall we say!

1 lb, steak (that's right..steak... rib eye to be exact, got it on sale and it was on special deal..no ground meat purchased)
.5 lb pork in pork chop form (no ground meat here either)
2 TBS +/- of fresh chopped parsley
3 large shallots
2-3 cloves garlic
1 cup Parmesan breadcrumbs ...these were purchased in a box ( you can make your own breadcrumbs and add oregano and a TBS of Parmesan cheese to the mix...)
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Using my Kitchen Aid grinder attachment, I ground my own meat using the larger die. After all the recalls of the tainted meat, you couldn't pay me enough money to buy ground beef in patty or regular shrink wrap form. We almost NEVER make meatloaf because of it. Go ahead, laugh...the local market (my favorite one..and they are generally very good) had a recall last month...again.

If you do not have a grinder, you can chop the meat really finely. I did this once before for meatballs and it does work.

If you have gone with a grinder option, peel the garlic and shallots and then put them thru the grinder at the end, to clean it out. Push through with an extra shallot if you are having problems.

Take the ground items and mix it up with the chopped parsley, breadcrumbs, two eggs and the salt and pepper.

Using a small disher (what looks  like a small icecream scoop) scoop out the mixture and make a ball in your hands that is 1.5 inches in size... give or take.

In a hot pan with 3 tbs of olive oil, cook the meatballs 5-8 at a time. Do not over load the pan as this will cool the pan down. Reduce the heat and then cook on med low, turning the balls until nicely browned on all sides.

This recipe does not have any additional fats added to it... my friend Diana pointed out you could use 90% lean beef that is preground to have the same fat ratio, but honestly the texture would be much different.

Add to a pan with spaghetti sauce, and simmer for a while, do not over stir as the balls are more delicate as they don't have as much fat in them to be a binder.

Enjoy!