Why is it that all that I can think about when writing this post is the You Tube video of Faith Hill recently telling off a concert groupie for groping her husband? I know, I have the mind of a 5th grader, don’t I?
We went to an Italian restaurant a couple of years ago and I ordered spaghetti and meatballs. To me, meatballs means lots and lots of meatballs and I was looking forward to my heaping amount on top of my pasta. When our food arrived, I looked at my plate and my expectations for the pasta were fulfilled… it was a heaping pile of pasta. Much to my dismay, my expectations for the meatball situation fell very short. On my plate was one, single, solitary meatball. It was a large meatball, but there was only one.
This was all wrong. Meatballs belong in groups and piles. They are not loners. They need others by their side to be complete.
That was the final time I ever order spaghetti and meatballs at a restaurant. From that day on, I stuck to things like Chicken Parmesan at Italian restaurants and skipped the meatball(s) all together. I could not be sure that the restaurants I went to had my same philosophy on meatballs and I was not willing to be disappointed again.
My favorite recipe for meatballs is my mom’s and I will share that with you some day soon. My old stand by meatball recipe for things like BBQ meatballs and rice, Meatball hoagies, or Meatball Calzones is the one I am getting ready to share with you. This recipe is extremely basic and simple. These freeze great so you can be an Alpha Mom and have some on hand. This recipe is also very versatile. You can add additional seasonings to the recipe to enhance the flavor however you would like. The best thing about this recipe is your meatballs won’t be lonely. One batch makes about 15 large or 30 small meatballs. There are plenty of meatball friends to go around.
Oven Baked Meatballs
Ingredients
- Oven Baked Meatballs
- 1 Pound Ground Beef or Ground Turkey*
- 1 Large Egg
- 1/4 cup onion finely chopped
- 1/3 cup Italian Herbed Breadcrumbs
- 1 Tbs Worcestershire sauce
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- This is the basic list of ingredients. I will sometimes add Italian Seasoning, Garlic, a 1/2 envelope of Lipton Onion Soup Mix, etc. The options are endless!
- *If using ground turkey or very lean ground beef add 1/4 cup of milk to your meat mixture
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Mix all ingredients together by hand.
- Shape mixture into several 1 1/2 inch balls.
- Place the meatballs into a lightly greased 9x13 inch glass baking dish and bake for 20-25 minutes or until light brown.
- Drain off any excess grease.
- Serve however you wish or let cool and freeze for later.
Craving more Italian recipes? Check out these recipes from around the web:
- Italian Bread Bowls from Baked by Rachel
- Easy Cheesy Skillet Lasagna from Farmgirl Gourmet
- Italian Vegetable Beef Soup from Aggie’s Kitchen
- Cheesy Pizza Soup from A Farmgirl’s Dabbles
I completely agree! Meatballs is plural. I don’t understand why restaurants don’t seem to understand this. This recipe looks great – I can’t wait to try it out. I like to experiment with combining different types of ground meats so next time meatballs are on the menu I’ll be testing this recip out. Thanks!
So sometimes less is more but certainly not with meatballs. You & Christine both get it, meatballs is plural!
I love the just a bite size so that I can have many!
I agree — nobody orders spaghetti and meatball — must be lots of meatballs on the plate. Lately I’ve been playing with turkey meatballs with a kind of falafel mix in place of bread crumbs. Interesting, but definitely not spaghetti-worthy yet!
Mmmmmmm-meatballs *said in my best Homer voice* NO ONE can eat just one! 😀 And in my opinion, a single meatball is a lonely meatball. Beautiful photo and yummy sounding recipe!
I’m with you, one meatball is a lonely meatball and I am all for food being fun, capricious and boisterous. A single meatball cannot be any of that.
Meatballs are one of my FAVORITE foods! I love how they can be made in a myriad of ways, rolled in copious amounts of red sauce and mingling with spaghetti, drowning in cream sauce and making out with egg noodles in a stroganoff or simply seared crispy in a pan and gobbled down with gusto right off a plate. Yum….meatballs!!!
You know how there are words where the plural is the same as the singlular? Well, meatball is one of them — only, on the serving side, there IS no singular. Its plural, as in many, many. No, more than that.
Perhaps it would surprise some of you to know that I’ve had meatballs served to me in Italy precisely once in four years. They just aren’t a big food item, at least in southern Italy, and when they are made, they are large (think baseball) and served *after* the plate of pasta as a second dish. You may have two if you like, but you probably won’t want it because there’s still salad, dessert, and coffee coming 😉
I like this recipe–looks quick, easy, and tasty, especially with the Worchestershire sauce. I’d substitute ground veal and pork for the beef, though, as my Nonna would turn over in her grave if she saw me putting beef in meatballs 🙂
Lots ‘o meatballs Yes! Ever try meatballs baked with a mixture of onions, teriyaki sauce and bbq sauce, with a little molasses and mustard thrown in? Divine.
I like your meatball story 🙂 Oven baked meatballs are great and like you said, a convenient thing to have frozen.
I’m a friend. The meatballs will not need very many more friends 🙂
Can’t agree no more!!!! Meatballs mean a lot of meatballs……totally belong to groups!!!!!
I agree – the whole reason to have spaghetti is to give the meatballs a comfortable place to hang out. Yours look delicious!
Your meatballs look amazing. They reminded me it’s been so long since I made a batch and you’ve given me a great recipe to try 🙂
ha, I had that happen to me at a fine rest. in Boston, I got one freaking large piece of meatball. If I wanted a hamburger, I would have ordered it 😉
Oh my! This happened to me too! I think it was at a Denny’s. I was about 8 and I cried and threw a tantrum because I wanted MORE meatballs! Hahaha.
They look delish, Kristen, and would make my husband lick his plate!
Yum! I love meatballs (plural) and I completely agree, one meatball just isn’t enough!
Funny story! I think it’s always best to make your own meatballs – the ones you buy may be full of mysterious ingredients.
Hee! (About the Faith Hill thing!)
This sounds delicious, I have actually baked my meatballs in the past, but I end up with the fat surrounding it, which is why I rarely do it. It’s the easy way out when you don’t feel like standing over the stove!
I was very lucky to have Lisa teach me her family recipe because since then I have become a meatball lover. Can’t wait for your mom’s recipe!
You know, I hardly ever make meatballs and I don’t know why. They are yummy and easy to make.
Meatballs don’t fall under the "less is more" category that’s for sure. But I can still only handle maybe 3 large meatballs on my plate…what can I say I am a small eater.
I need meatballs, I really do, mmm.
oh i fully agree, i canntot condone a single meatball! meatballs are so hard to take pictures of too and these look absolutely delicious, YUM. oven baked, i never even thought of it….
Meatballs always make friends wherever they go.
I made meatballs the other day and discovered we were out of spaghetti…so we used fettacini. NOT the same. The sauce didn’t stick to it and it didn’t taste right. One time at a fancy hotel in Vancouver I ordered Waffles with strawberries for breakfast, expecting waffles covered with strawberries. What I got was waffles with two strawberries beside them on the plate. As with your "meatball" some restaurants do not get it.
Baked!!!! Not fried! What a great recipe! I think the big meatball is called "polpettone" and my kids call it "the great hamburguer."
Would you add Almond milk? Have a friend that can’t do dairy products except eggs…..