Skip to main content

Ricotta meatballs

 


Who doesn't love a delicious. meatball after a long week of grad school? I know I for sure do. Paired with crispy bread and a simple salad, it can't be beat.


Ingredients:

garlic cloves, 2 minced, 1 whole

1 egg

4 ounces ricotta 

10 ounces ground beef  

6 ounces tomato paste

2 mini French rolls 

3 ounces baby spinach

Oil, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, balsamic vinegar


Method:

In a medium bowl, mix to combine 1 clove minced garlic, all but 2 tablespoons ricotta, 1 large egg, 3⁄4 teaspoon salt, and a few grinds of pepper . Add beef, then with slightly moistened hands, knead until combined; form mixture into 8 meatballs.

Preheat broiler.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high until shimmering. Add meatballs ; cook, turning once or twice, until browned but not cooked through. Transfer to a plate.

Add 1⁄4 cup tomato paste and 1⁄4 teaspoon 1 clove minced garlic to same skillet; cook, stirring, until paste darkens slightly, 1–2 minutes. Stir in 11⁄2 cups water, 1⁄4 cup balsamic vinegar, red pepper flakes, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Return meatballs to skillet. Bring to a simmer; cook over medium, basting meatballs with a spoon, until sauce thickens.

Meanwhile, split rolls in half. Generously brush cut sides with oil; season with salt and pepper. Place rolls directly on top oven rack and broil until lightly toasted, 1– 2 minutes per side (watch closely). Remove from oven and rub a clove of garlic on the cut sides.

In a medium bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons oil and 1 tablespoon vinegar ; season to taste with salt and pepper. Toss spinach in bowl with vinaigrette.

Spoon meatballs and sauce into shallow bowls. Spread a dollop of the remaining ricotta over top of each garlic bread. Serve salad alongside. Enjoy!


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Raspberry Pomegranate Jam

Tis the season to be making homemade gifts! Pomegranates are in season and their juice is a festive deep ruby red color. I knew I had to make them into a jam to give away. Straight pomegranate flavor is a little tart for me; I added raspberries for the texture of their seeds and their sweetness. This is a very simple recipe to make and will yield 6 to 7 8 ounces jars of jam or 12 to 14 4 ounce jars, if you like to give away sample sizes during the holidays. Enjoy! Ingredients: 3 1/2 cups pomegranate juice 1 cup mashed raspberries 7 cups sugar 1 tablespoon butter 1 1/75 ounce package Sure Jell Method: Sterilize your jars and lids. Set aside. In a heavy bottomed large stock pot, add the pomegranate juice, raspberries and butter. Mix well. Add in the sugar. Bring to a full rolling boil then stir in the Sure Jell. Allow to boil hard for 1 minutes. Remove from the heat and skim off any foam. Ladle into the sterile jars, twist on the lids and pr

Peek-a-boo Squares

My grandma, Mimi, taught me this recipe. I used to make this with her and my mother as a child. It is my very favorite dessert. It is incredibly easy to make, and even easier to eat. My favorite part of making this as a child was dusting every bar generously with snowy white powdered sugar.  My favorite version of this dessert uses canned blueberry pie filling; I vastly prefer Libby brand over the store brand. You can make blueberry pie filling from scratch with sugar, cornstarch, bleberries, etc. but using the canned stuff is easy in a pinch and is much for nostalgic for me. Plus, I don’t notice a vast improvement over my homemade blueberry pie filling and the Libby brand; it just takes me longer to put this dessert together.  I have been known to whip up a pan of these Friday night and have them disappear by Saturday afternoon. Be warned, these things are addictive! Ingredients: 3 cups of all-purpose flour 2 cups of granulated sugar 4 eggs 2 sticks of

Copycat Star Crunch

I really love Little Debbie snacks but I very rarely have them. I don’t like eating things that are full of unpronounceable ingredients and preservatives. Plus, I greatly prefer to make things myself. My favorites have to be Oatmeal Creme Pies and Star Crunch. I am still looking for a perfect Oatmeal Creme Pie copycat recipe, but this recipe for Star Crunch is absolutely perfect. These cookies are a fantastic combination of caramel, chocolate, and crunchy crisped rice cereal. They keep in a sealed container for a week, or in the fridge for a month. Next time you crave  Little Debbie Star Crunch, try your hand at making your own! Ingredients: Recipe Credit: Adapted from Stella Parks 1/2 cup water 1 cup sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 1/4 cup heavy cream 1 tablespoon vanilla paste 3 ounces of milk chocolate chips (use a chocolate for baking; some versions of “eating” chocolate contain too much fat. When your combine this chocolate and the caramel together, the