Traditionally polpette are meatballs made with beef and a mix of either ground pork or shredded salami, breadcrumbs and or various cheeses. In this recipe Sonia uses both bacon & turkey, parmesan cheese and homemade breads crumbs. Delicious!
INGREDIENTS
1/3 cup olive oil, 4 tablespoons onion, 1 celery stalk, 1 clove of garlic, 2 teaspoons salt, 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper, 1-2 slices bacon (optional), 32 ounces canned crushed plum tomatoes, 2 basil leaves. 1 pound of ground beef or turkey (or 1/2 pound of each), 1 egg, 1 tablespoon parsley, 1 teaspoon sage, 1 teaspoon rosemary, 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese, 2 teaspoons salt, 2 teaspoons pepper, 1 teaspoon nutmeg, 1 clove of garlic, 1/2 cup mix of flour & bread crumbs.DIRECTIONS
Mix together flour & bread crumbs, set aside in a wide bowl or plate. Finely chop the parsley, sage & rosemary. Mix together with ground meat, eggs, parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, nutmeg & finely chopped garlic clove. Round mixture into balls about 1 inch in diameter. Roll into flour & bread crumb mixture. Place on a tray and set aside.
Finely chop onion, celery, garlic & bacon. Heat saucepan on low heat. Add olive oil. Sweat all ingredients at once: onion, celery, garlic, salt, crushed red pepper & bacon. Many Italian dishes start with this method of cooking down the onions, celery and garlic (sometimes carrots) until the onions are clear. Add the crushed tomatoes, whole basil leaves and meatballs. Cook all ingredients together on med-low heat for 1 hour.
Follow the "PROPER PASTA" recipe for instructions on serving the sauce with pasta. Garnish with chopped Italian parsley and grated parmesan cheese.
SERVING SIZE
2 servings (5 meatballs per serving)
NOTES
Meatballs should be prepared a day before you make the sauce and kept in the refrigerator to set overnight.
