We have one lone spoon that somehow escaped storage and made the move to Rabat with us. Every time I grab the spoon, it brings a smile to my face. It’s like having a little piece of our prior homes right in my hands. It sounds silly, but the luster and weight of the spoon often gives me a fleeting feeling of our house in Indiana and sometimes evokes homesickness. The spoon belongs to the flatware from our wedding registry– just a simple, brushed stainless steel flatware set that I remember picking out with Omar in those frenzied pre-wedding months eight years ago. Recently, I discovered that Omar has also taken note of the spoon when he told me that he’d let me have the “good spoon.” Truly, it’s the little, and even common things, that can really have an effect on us.
It’s often the basic, no-fuss, meals that also bring me a taste of comfort and home — usually in pasta form. A few weeks ago I realized that I’ve never shared my version of spaghetti and meatballs, even though it is a tried and true standby that I’ve tweaked over the years. I used to make the meatballs with breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese like Ina Garten, but now I favor a piece of bread soaked in milk to bind the mixture and I omit the cheese. When I first started making meatballs, they were always too soft and never held together. I find that the bread and milk methods creates a soft, but not mushy meatball. Over mixing the meat, especially with warm hands, can also affect the texture of the meatballs.
When I’m in the US, I usually use a mix of ground beef and ground pork or sausage. Of course, in Morocco, ground pork is almost nowhere to be found so I just use ground beef. This is just fine by me since our local butcher has magical ground beef. That is probably an overstatement, but unlike the ground beef in US grocery stores, our butcher takes whichever cut of meat you request, and puts it into the grinder before my every eyes. It’s awesome. It’s fresh, and I choose which cut I want. One of my favorite things to do with this magical meat is to form them into little meatballs, add some spaghetti, marinara, and a side salad (like my Apricot Fennel Salad).
Dinner in 30 minutes – Rachel Ray isn’t the only one who can pull that off!
- For the meatballs:
- 1 lb. or ½ Kg ground beef (ground beef chuck works well)
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1 slice of bread
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon chopped flat parsley
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- ¼ to ½ cup olive oil
- For the Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons good olive oil, as needed
- 1 small yellow or white onion, chopped
- 1 carrot, peeled and chopped
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
- 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup dry red wine
- 1 28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes (or 2 15 ounce cans will work too)
- 1 tablespoon freshly chopped parsley
- 1 tablespoon freshly chopped basil
- salt
- pepper
- ½ cup freshly grated parmesan for topping (optional)
- 1 pound of spaghetti cooked per the box instructions
- In a small bowl, pour ¼ cup milk and soak in 1 slice of bread. I usually use a slice of whole wheat bread, but you can use any bread you like. The end of the loaf works well for this, and if the end piece is a little small, use both end pieces.
- In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients, including the soaked bread. It’s best to start this first with a large fork or wooden spoon, then get in there quickly and mix with your hands. Work quickly and lightly with clean hands, as you form the meat into balls about 1 inch in diameter.
- Heat 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil in a large flat bottom sauté pan or Dutch oven over medium heat.
- Add the meatballs leaving in enough space between the meatballs so that none of them are touching (or even in danger of touching). You’ll have to do this in batches, adding a tablespoon or two of oil between batches as necessary.
- Brown the meatballs for 8-10 minutes per batch and resist the temptation to roll them all around right away. I usually leave them for 3-4 minutes before I move them to get the other sides. (MULTI-TASKING NOTE: I am also chopping the veggies for the sauce while the meatballs are browning)
- Once browned, remove from the pan and set aside on a plate. Don’t worry if they aren’t all the way cooked through, they’ll get another blast of cooking before serving.
- Once the meatballs are browned and removed from the pan, add another 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil if needed. If the pan already has enough oil and grease to generously coat the bottom of the pan, you don’t need to add any more oil.
- Using the same pan (don’t clean it), heat over medium high heat and add the onions. Cook onions for 2-3 minutes, then add the carrots and garlic. Cook the veggies for another 5-6 minutes or until softened.
- Add the oregano, red pepper flakes (if using) and a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Mix everything together, then add the wine and turn the heat to high. Scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon and deglaze the pan, letting the liquid cook down and evaporate.
- Once almost all of the wine has evaporated, about 2-3 minutes, stir in the the crushed tomatoes and turn the heat down to medium.
- Once the sauce is simmering, taste and add salt or pepper as necessary.
- Carefully place the meatballs into the sauce and simmer on low heat for another 15-20 minutes.
- As the meatballs simmer, bring a pot of water to boil and cook the spaghetti per the box instructions.
- When the pasta is al dente, drain the pasta. In the large pot, add the meatballs, sauce, and fresh basil and parsley to the pasta. Stir gently and serve with Parmesan.
I'm a food lover, travel addict, career counselor, professor, and lawyer living in Tunisia (and sometimes Washington, DC). 
I ate this, like I eat 99% of Ethel’s creations. It was crazy delicious. Crazy.