SPAGHETTI & MEATBALLS

Spaghetti and meatballs is one of our favorites. The great thing about this recipe is that the sauce and meatballs both make enough for two meals, and can both be frozen. Earlier this week my son and I made up the meatballs and froze them, then last night I took them out of the freezer and put them in the fridge to thaw. I made my sauce in the crockpot, but you can also simmer it on the stove. Either way, this recipe is very, very yummy!

Sauce:

2 tbs. olive oil
2/3 cup chopped onion
4-5 cloves of garlic, minced
2-28oz cans crushed tomatoes
2-12oz cans tomato paste
2 3/4 cups water (I omitted this, I like a thicker sauce!)
2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 tbs. sugar (I used 3)
1-2 whole bay leaves (I used 2)

Meatballs:

1 1/2 lbs ground beef (85% lean)
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1/2 up Italian bread crumbs
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1 tbs. dried minced onion
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes (optional, I omitted this)
1/2 tsp. pepper
(I also added about a tbs. of Spicy Italian Seasoning, the kind in a grinder)

For Meatballs:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix all of the meatball ingredients together. Use a 1/4 cup measure for large meatballs, and a small cookie scoop for small meatballs. Place meatballs on a large baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes. If you are making these ahead, this is where you would flash freeze the meatballs, and put in freezer bags. Otherwise, bake and drain on a paper towel, and add to your sauce.

For Sauce(stovetop):

In a large pot, heat oil on medium heat. Saute' onion until translucent. Add minced garlic and stir for one more minute. Reduce heat to medium low, and add the remainder of the sauce ingredients. At this time you would add your cooked, and drained meatballs. Let sauce simmer for 1 1/2 hours stirring occasionally. If sauce starts to stick reduce heat to low. Remove bay leaves before eating.

For Sauce(crockpot):

Saute' onion and garlic in a small saucepan, and then add to crockpot. Add the remaining ingredients and cook on low for 6 hours. I added the cooked meatballs the last 2-3 hours of cooking.