# Spaghetti and Meatballs

- ⏲️Prep time: 20 min
- 🍳 Cook time: 40 min
- 🍽️Servings: 6

## Ingredients

### For the sauce

- ½ chopped sweet yellow onion
- 3 cloves chopped garlic
- 1 cup finely chopped carrots
- 1 cup chopped cremini brown mushrooms
- 2 cans (28 oz.) Italian plum tomatoes
- ¼ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
- ¼ cup chopped fresh basil
- 3 tbsp. tomato paste
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan-Romano cheese blend
- ¼ cup red wine (optional)

### For the meatballs

- 1 lb. ground beef
- ½ lb. fresh bulk Italian style pork sausage
- 2 tbsp. finely chopped basil
- 2 tbsp. finely chopped Italian parsley
- ½ cup finely chopped cremini brown mushrooms
- 2 large eggs
- ¾ cup unseasoned breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan-Romano cheese blend
- Red wine (optional)

### For the pasta

- 1 ½ lb. dry spaghetti

## Directions

### Prepare the sauce

1. Heat olive oil in a 4 to 5 quart pot on medium-high heat.
2. Add onions and cook for 2 minutes.
3. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds longer or until fragrant.
4. Add the carrots and mushrooms, and cook for 2 minutes.
5. Add the tomato paste, stir to blend, and cook for a minute longer.
6. Add the canned tomatoes, basil, and parsley.
7. Mash and stir the tomatoes with a potato masher until the sauce starts to thicken, about 5 minutes over medium-high heat.
8. Reduce heat to low and simmer gently while prepating meatballs, stirring occasionally.

### Form the meatballs

9. In a large bowl, mix by hand the beef, Italian sausage, basil, parsley, mushrooms, eggs, breadcrumbs, cheese, and 2 tablespoons of salt and pepper.
  - Do not overmix or the meatballs will be tough.
10. Use small melon baller (or teaspoon) to form 1-inch round meatballs.
11. Roll and compress into tight balls.

### Cook the meatballs

12. In a separate wide, shallow pan, heat olive oil on medium-high heat.
13. Brown meatballs on all sides for about 2-3 minutes.
  - Depending on the pan size, you may need to brown two batches of the meatballs. Cook them in a single layer; do not crowd the pan by stacking them.
  - Do not overcook the meatballs; they will continue to cook in the sauce.
14. Towards the end of browning the meatballs, add a little bit of red wine to deglaze the pan.

### Finish and simmer the sauce

15. Add the cheese and red wine to the sauce and stir it in. Add 1 teaspoon of salt to taste.
16. Add meatballs and gently stir. Simmer the sauce and meatballs for 30-45 minutes while cooking the spaghetti, stirring occasionally.

### Cook the spaghetti

17. Fill a large pot with 4 quarts of water. Add 2 tablespoons of salt and bring it to a boil.
18. When the water is boiling, add the dry spaghetti to the pot.
19. Boil the spaghetti for 8-10 minutes, or to al dente.
20. Drain the spaghetti in a collander.
21. (Optional) Add ~1/3 cup of pasta water to sauce to help sauce stick to noodles

### Serve

21. Place a thin layer of sauce on a plate. Add pasta, sauce and meatballs.

## Contribution

- ClosedGL - [GitHub](https://github.com/ClosedGL2)

;tags: italian pasta beef pork cheesefare
