Italian Recipe Chatter

Growing up, I always looked forward to family dinners. When my dad got off work early enough to cook, there was about a 50-50 chance that we would be treated to a real Italian feast. My personal favorite, spaghetti and meatballs, was reserved for special occasions. The sauce was memorable, certainly, but the meatballs were the real star of the show. Here’s one of the Italian meatball recipes I still follow to this day.

Ingredients:
2 pounds of ground beef, veal and pork mixture
2 eggs
1 clove garlic, crushed
¼ cup fresh parsley, minced
1 cup bread crumbs
salt, to taste
splash of milk

Directions:
1. Combine all ingredients except garlic in a large mixing bowl. Shape into meatballs.
2. Fry until browned in a skillet with olive oil and garlic. Add to tomato sauce, allow to simmer there for at least 3 hours.

Great food has a way of bringing a family even closer. A communal meal provides us with an excuse to get together and talk about the day’s accomplishments and activities. If it weren’t for dinnertime, we might find ourselves living among relative strangers. Pasta sauce recipes like the following marinara recipe are quick and convenient. They allow you to spend less time fussing around in the kitchen and more time catching up with your spouse and kids.

Ingredients:
2 cans stewed tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
1 tsp. dried oregano
salt to taste
¼ tsp. ground black pepper
6 Tsp. olive oil
1/3 cup finely diced onion
½ cup white wine

Directions:
1. Put tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper in a food processor and blend until smooth.
2. Saute onion in olive oil over medium heat, adding tomato sauce and white wine. Place bay leaf in mixture and simmer for 30 minutes. Stir regularly.