Spaghetti & Meatballs in Simmered Marinara

The Italian-American Sunday classic on a weeknight: tender Parmesan-garlic beef meatballs browned and then simmered in a quick crushed-tomato sauce, piled over spaghetti.

Ingredients

• 1½ lb ground beef
• ½ cup panko
• ½ cup grated Parmesan, plus more to serve
• 1 large egg
• 5 garlic cloves, minced
• ½ bunch parsley, chopped
• 1 onion, finely diced
• 2 cans (28 oz each) crushed tomatoes
• 1 lb spaghetti
• a handful of basil leaves

From your pantry: 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp tomato paste, 1 tsp Italian seasoning, ½ tsp red pepper flakes, 1 tsp sugar, ⅓ cup milk, 2 tsp salt, ½ tsp pepper.

Instructions

1. Soak the panko in the milk for 5 minutes. Mix in the egg, Parmesan, parsley, 2 cloves garlic, 1 tsp salt and the pepper, then gently work in the beef with your hands just until combined. Roll into 18 meatballs.
2. Heat the oil in a large deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown the meatballs on all sides in two batches, about 6 minutes per batch. They don't need to be cooked through. Set aside.
3. Lower the heat to medium, add the onion and cook until soft, 5 minutes. Stir in the remaining garlic, tomato paste, Italian seasoning and pepper flakes for 1 minute.
4. Add the crushed tomatoes, sugar, ½ cup water and 1 tsp salt and bring to a simmer. Nestle in the meatballs, cover partly and simmer gently until they're cooked through (160°F) and the sauce has thickened, 25 to 30 minutes.
5. Meanwhile cook the spaghetti in salted water until al dente. Toss it with a few ladles of sauce, then top with meatballs, more sauce, torn basil and Parmesan.

Tip: Mix the meatballs with a light hand and stop as soon as everything is combined. Overworking the meat makes them dense and tough.

Nutrition per serving

Good for

Adapted from Spend With Pennies.

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