PASTA LA VISTA

Craving authentic Italian cuisine? These recipes are worth every twirl!

- 

Meatballs with Sauce

MAKES 20

INGREDIENTS

MEATBALLS

1kg minced (ground) beef

1 egg

1 garlic clove, grated

50g grated parmesan cheese, plus extra to serve

¼ cup (60ml) full-cream (whole) milk

50g breadcrumbs

½ bunch finely chopped fresh parsley

Pinch of dried oregano

15g salt

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

NAPOLI SAUCE

100ml extra virgin olive oil

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 onion, chopped

2kg tinned crushed tomatoes

½ bay leaf

½ bunch fresh basil sprigs, leaves chopped

3g salt

Pinch of freshly ground black pepper

METHOD

1 Preheat the oven to 180C. Line a baking tray with baking paper.

2 To make the meatballs, put all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix together using your hands. Roll into 60g meatballs and place on the baking tray.

3 Bake for about 20-25 minutes, or until cooked through.

4 While the meatballs are baking, make the sauce. Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat and lightly brown the garlic, then add the onion and cook until golden. Add the tomatoes, bay leaf and half the basil, then increase the heat to high. Continue mixing while the sauce comes to the boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 1 hour 30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Add a little water if the sauce starts to dry out, and skim any foam that rises to the surface. Add the meatballs, stirring to coat them well in the sauce, then cover and continue cooking for another 5-10 minutes, or until the meatballs are heated through.

5 At the end, add the salt, pepper and the remaining basil. Mix well and turn off the heat. Serve with extra grated parmesan.