Meatballs and Red Sauce

     There are some recipes that only get cooked a few times a year. There are many reasons for this. Sometimes the recipe calls for expensive or hard to find items. Sometimes the recipe is difficult or time consuming. Sometimes it's something you only cook for special occasions. In this particular case, it's a matter of being time consuming. If you want to do this particular recipe right, you need to be willing to take the time.  You're going to get your hands dirty. You're going to make a mess.
     So why do I even cook this particular recipe at all? Well, it's delicious. The second I saw this recipe, I knew it was going to be good. I've gotten some duds out of Bon Appetit before, but this would not be one of them. The main reason I cook this dish? The wife loves it. Raves about it. This is one of her favorite things for me to cook. That's enough reason for me.

Meatballs with Red Sauce
(via Bon Appetit)

Ingredients 

Sauce

• 2 28-ounce cans whole peeled tomatoes in juice, drained, juice reserved, tomatoes finely chopped 
• ½ cup (1 stick) butter 
• 2 medium onions, peeled, halved 
• ½ teaspoon salt 

Meatballs

• 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs made from crustless French or country style bread 
• 1/3 cup milk
• 8 ounces ground beef (85/15%) 
• 8 ounces ground pork 
• 1 cup finely ground (not grated) Parmesan cheese 
• 1/3 cup finely chopped Italian parsley 
• 1 teaspoon salt 
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper 
• 2 large eggs 
• 2 large garlic cloves, pressed 

Freshly grated Parmesan cheese for serving

Directions

Sauce

1. Combine tomatoes with juice, butter, onions, and salt in large wide pot. Bring to simmer over medium heat. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered 45 minutes 
2. Use immersion blender to break up large pieces. Sauce should not be completely smooth. Season with salt and pepper, remove from heat 

Meatballs

1. Combine breadcrumbs and milk in small bowl; stir until breadcrumbs are evenly moistened, let stand for 10 minutes. 
2. Place beef and pork in large bowl and break up into small chunks. Add 1 cup ground Parmesan, parsley, salt and pepper 
3. Whisk eggs in small bowl; whisk in garlic. Add to meat. 
4. Using hands, squeeze all milk from breadcrumbs. Add them to meat mixture. LIGHTLY mix until all ingredients are combined. DO NOT OVERMIX!!! Chill at least 15 minutes and up to 1 hour. 
5. Moisten hands with reserved milk. Roll meat mixture GENTLY between palms into golf-ball sized balls. AVOID COMPACTING THE MEATBALLS! 
6. Place single layer in sauce pot. Bring to simmer, reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until meatballs are thoroughly cooked through, about 15-20 minutes 
7. Cool slightly, chill uncovered until cold, cover and keep chilled. Rewarm before serving.

Good times!