Spaghetti and 'Meatballs'


photo source: Gourmet.com
I made meatballs for the Italian Wedding Soup (see post below.)  My man and I kept talking about the meatballs.  They were so good and we wanted more!!!

So tonight I made the same meatballs (actually they are turkey/chicken-and-pork-balls), and served them with spaghetti and marinara.

I used a store-bought marinara, but I think these 'meatball's' would be fantastic with a puttanesca. 

Spaghetti and Meatballs
Meatball recipe adapted from Barefoot Contessa 
For the meatballs:
3/4 pound ground chicken thighs or ground turkey thighs
1/2 pound ground pork sausage
2/3 cup fresh white bread crumbs
4 cloves minced garlic
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for serving
3 tablespoons milk
2 extra-large egg, lightly beaten
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 lb spaghetti pasta
1 jar marinara

Directions
Preheat the oven to
350 degrees F.
For the meatballs, place the ground chicken, sausage, bread crumbs, garlic, parsley, Pecorino, Parmesan, milk, egg, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a bowl and combine gently with a fork. With a teaspoon, drop 1 to 1 1/4-inch meatballs onto a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. (You should have about 40 meatballs. They don't have to be perfectly round.) Bake for 30 minutes, until cooked through and lightly browned. Set aside.
While meatballs are cooking, boil water and cook pasta until tender.  Heat sauce through, and add meatballs when they are finished.

Serve with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.