Meatballs with Pasta

Meatballs in Pasta Sauce

Back in college, I stayed in a cozy little condo unit in Katipunan, Quezon City. Naturally, my favorite place in the condo was the kitchen, which came equipped with an electric oven and stove. I cooked and baked a lot during my stay there and frequently invited some classmates over for dinner to share my cooking. The Meatballs with Pasta was a certified favorite, along with my chocolate chip cookies of course.

It's been a couple of years already since I left the condo, and my classmates and I have since parted ways. All of us being very busy with our own jobs and lives, in general. So when last week, I got a call from Mich telling me she missed our meatballs and cookies sessions, we rang our other barkada and got together for lunch. At the center of our meal is, of course, meatballs with pasta, and for dessert, chocolate chip cookies.

As for the meatballs recipe, well, I already forgot where I got the original recipe from but I have since customized it, adding my personal touch to this classic Italian favorite. Below is the recipe. I hope your friends and loved ones like this as much as mine do.

Meatballs with Pasta

Ingredients:
1 cup fresh white breadcrumbs
100ml milk
1/2 k ground sirloin
50g grated parmesan
1 tbsp chopped sage
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 egg
1 big portabello mushroom, finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste

oil for frying
500grams pasta
prepared tomato based pasta sauce good for 500grams pasta
grated parmesan cheese
fresh parsley finely chopped

Intructions:
1. In a big bowl, Soak breadcrumbs with milk.
2. In a separate bowl, combine the sirloin, parmesan, sage, basil, onion, egg, salt and pepper to taste.

3. Add the beef mixture to the soaked breadcrumbs and mix well.

4. Form into into balls, about three inches in diameter. Fry meatballs in oil until golden brown.
5. Heat pasta sauce in a deep sauce pan (I suggest adding a bit of water, to prevent scorching during the simmering process) and add in the meatballs. Let the meatballs simmer in the pasta sauce over low heat for 20 minutes.

6. Serve meatballs with its sauce on top of cooked pasta (I prefer bowties). Garnish with parmesan cheese and parsely.

Note: You can omit the portabello mushroom without compromising the basic recipe if you cannot find any (like what happened to me when I hade meatballs for my friends last Saturday). If you prefer a cheesier meatball, like my brother, you can also add a cube of quickmelt cheese or mozzarella cheese in the center of each meatball.

The other food I served, thanks to my mom's help, consisted of--