Takes some time but well worth it.
Equipment:
a 12- to 16-qt nonreactive heavy pot or 2 smaller nonreactive pots; a 6- to 8-qt pasta pot with a pasta/steamer insert for cooking spaghetti in 2 batches
Make tomato sauce:
Drain tomatoes, reserving juice in a large bowl. Crush tomatoes with your hands and add to juice.
Cook onions in oil in pot over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes with their juice, 4 tsp salt, and 1 tsp pepper. Simmer sauce, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Season with salt.
Make meatballs while sauce simmers:
Cook onions in extra-virgin olive oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl to cool.
Soak bread in milk in another bowl until soft, about 5 minutes. Firmly squeeze bread to remove excess milk, discarding milk.
Stir together cooled onion mixture, bread, eggs, parmesan, parsley, oregano, lemon zest, 5 1/2 tsp salt, and 1 1/2 tsp pepper until combined. Add meats to bread mixture, gently mixing with your hands until just combined (do not overmix).
Form meat mixture into about 70 (1 1/2-inch) balls with dampened hands, arranging meatballs on 2 large baking sheets or in shallow baking pans.
Heat olive or vegetable oil (1 cup) in a 12-inch heavy skillet (preferably nonstick) over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking, then brown meatballs in 4 or 5 batches (without crowding), turning frequently, about 5 minutes per batch. Return to baking sheets.
Add meatballs to sauce and gently simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until cooked through, 20 to 30 minutes. (If pot is not large enough, divide meatballs and sauce between 2 pots.)
Prepare pasta:
Cook spaghetti in 2 batches in pasta insert in boiling salted water (3 Tbsp salt for 6 qt water) until just al dente, draining and tossing each batch with some of sauce in a large serving dish.
Serve with meatballs, remaining sauce, and grated cheese.
Cooks notes:
Meatballs can be made and simmered in sauce 5 days ahead and chilled (covered once cool).
Meatballs with sauce can be frozen in an airtight container or heavy-duty sealable bags up to 3 months.
January 2009 Gourmet Magazine
A heaping platter of spaghetti and meatballs evokes a feeling of comfortperfect for a family get-together. The stars of this dish are the meatballs, of course, and they don?t disappointlots of garlic and Parmigiano-Reggiano give them a robust flavor that stands up to the hearty tomato sauce.
View line-by-line Nutrition Insights™: Discover which ingredients contribute the calories/sodium/etc.
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Serving Size: 1 Serving (889g) | ||
Recipe Makes: 12 | ||
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Calories: 1379 | ||
Calories from Fat: 569 (41%) | ||
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Amt Per Serving | % DV | |
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Total Fat 63.2g | 84 % | |
Saturated Fat 16.5g | 83 % | |
Monounsaturated Fat 34g | ||
Polyunsanturated Fat 7.3g | ||
Cholesterol 356.1mg | 110 % | |
Sodium 1135.7mg | 39 % | |
Potassium 1921.2mg | 51 % | |
Total Carbohydrate 133.8g | 39 % | |
Dietary Fiber 11.4g | 45 % | |
Sugars, other 122.4g | ||
Protein 68.6g | 98 % | |
Powered by: USDA Nutrition Database Disclaimer: Nutrition facts are derived from linked ingredients (shown at left in colored bullets) and may or may not be complete. Always consult a licensed nutritionist or doctor if you have a nutrition-related medical condition. |
Calories per serving: 1379
Get detailed nutrition information, including item-by-item nutrition insights, so you can see where the calories, carbs, fat, sodium and more come from.
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