Italian Meat Balls


Ingredients:

1 cup unseasoned bread crumbs
¾ cup Romano or Parmesan Cheese, finely grated
½ cup whole milk
½ cup beef broth
½ cup chopped fresh parsley (Or 2 T dried)
3 eggs, beaten
2 T. dried oregano
1 T. garlic, minced
1 tsp. Salt
1 T. ground black pepper
1 tsp. Dried basil
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Pinch of nutmeg
2 lbs ground chuck
(If preparing to serve with a sauce then you will also need 1 additional cup beef broth)


Directions:

Mix all ingredients together very well. Then shape into meatballs.
If preparing for use in a soup do not cook beforehand. If preparing to use in a sauce, such as a marinara with pasta, then proceed with the following instructions for cooking:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees farenheit.
Spray bottom of baking dish or pan with non-stick spray.
Place meatballs on the pan so that they’re not touching.
Pour the 1 cup beef broth into the pan.
Bake for 25 minutes or until the meatballs are just cooked through.
Reserve pan juices for sauce.


Notes:

This recipe made about double (or more!) the amount I needed for any one meal, so after I'd formed the meatballs (some small and some large) I placed them on wax paper and put them into the freezer for several hours. After they had frozen (separately) I threw them all into a ziplock freezer bag for later use. I dearly LOVE time savers like this, since I enjoy cooking when I have the time, and love good food all the time! But I only have time to cook long, complicated recipes on the weekends.


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