Spaghetti and Meatballs

I have memories of my grandpa (who came from Italy as a boy) telling me how his mom would slow cook the sauce all day long, and the house would be filled with the pleasant aroma. I have tweaked the traditional recipe a bit, but I think it tastes pretty good. Also, just so you know our family sauce recipes are not written down anywhere. It is passed down by the grandma's teaching the granddaughters how to make it in the kitchen. There is not a whole lot of exact measurements, we mainly eye ball the amounts that go into the sauce pot. So, the measurements I list below are estimates. Thought I'd add that disclaimer.

A little Italian cooking lesson: Pasta is not intended to be drenched in the sauce, rather lightly coated. But if you are like my husband, he just loves his sauce and drowns the poor noodles in it. Also, the pasta and meat are traditionally served separately. However, I like to put the meatballs in with the sauce and noodles. Now for the recipes:

Sauce:

1 cup onion

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 can tomato paste

3 cans tomato sauce

1/2-1 cup beef broth

2 cans whole peeled tomatoes, undrained and chopped (or you can buy already diced or crushed tomatoes for quicker meal prep.)

Italian seasoning or basil

Salt and pepper to taste

Saute garlic and onion in olive oil until onion is tender. Add tomato paste and cook for approx. one minute. Add tomato sauce and diced tomatoes. Then I add a little splash of beef broth to add another dimension of flavor, and to thin it out if necessary. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer for as long as you would like or have time for. The longer the better! Add the Italian seasoning or basil in at the end, so you don't lose the flavor of the herbs in the sauce. 1 tsp. of dried equals 1 Tbs. of fresh.

Meatballs:

1/2 cup bread crumbs

2 links sweet turkey Italian sausage, remove casing

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

1/3 cup fresh basil (yummm!!!)

1/4 cup chopped parsley

1 egg

2 garlic cloves

1 pound ground chuck (or whatever ground beef you prefer)

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. It is easier to remove jewelry and just get your hands in this concoction.

Then with wet hands roll the mixture into little meatballs. Place meatballs under the broiler for about 15 minutes.

I like to add the meatballs to the sauce and let them soak in their a bit, but if you want to go the traditional route let them sit poolside.