Kitch n Therapy

I have been making these meatballs since the late 1990’s when I spied in a Bon Appetite magazine.  The original recipe calls for sweet Italian sausage, but I often use half sausage and half ground been.  And I always double.  Yummy!!

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients:

Sauce:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 28-ounce cans diced tomatoes in juice
4 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Meatballs:

2/3 cup fresh breadcrumbs
3 tablespoons milk
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
1 large egg
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 pound sweet Italian sausages, casings removed
2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
2 tablespoons dried currants

Directions:

For Sauce:
Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-low heat. Add onion; sauté until golden, about 10 minutes. Add garlic; stir 1 minute. Add tomatoes with juices and 2 tablespoons basil; bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer until sauce thickens, breaking up tomatoes with fork, about 1 hour. Mix in 2 tablespoons basil. Season with salt and pepper. Set sauce aside.

For Meatballs:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly oil baking sheet. Mix crumbs and milk in medium bowl; let stand 5 minutes. Mix in Parmesan, onion, basil, egg, garlic and pepper. Add sausage, pine nuts and currants; blend well. Using wet hands, form mixture into 1 1/4-inch balls. Place on baking sheet. Bake until meatballs are light brown and cooked through, about 30 minutes. Add to sauce.

Cook 1 pound of pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite. Drain. Mound in dish. Bring sauce and meatballs to simmer. Spoon over spaghetti.

Courtesy of Fine Cooking  Aug/Sept 2015

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

2 medium cloves garlic, smashed

3 4-inch sprigs fresh rosemary, bruised with the dull side of a knife

3 sprigs fresh thyme, bruised with the dull side of a knife

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 1/4 lb. skirt steak, trimmed of excess surface fat

Marinate the steak:

Combine the oil, garlic, rosemary, thyme, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1/2 tsp. pepper in a baking dish or zip-top bag large enough to hold the steak.  Add the steak and marinate for a least 1 hour at room temperature or up to 6 hours in the refrigerator

Directions

Remove the steak from the marinade, cut into manageable pieces for grilling, if you like, season generously with salt and pepper, and grill, flipping once, until grill marks form on both sides and cooked to your liking, about 3 minutes per side for medium rare (135°F).  Transfer to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes.

If serving with Grilled Vegetable Salad, slice the steak with the grain into 4 to 5 inch pieces, then slice thinly against the grain and arrange over the vegetables.  Hold out some corn and tomatoes and sprinkle over the steak, along with scallions and sea salt.  Serve.