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The Best Spaghetti & Meatballs

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Servings 6

Ingredients

  • 1 lb spaghetti

For the Beef & Zucchini Meatballs:

  • 1 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 1 cup shredded, drained zucchini (about 2 small/ med zucchini)
  • 3/4 cup panko (or regular breadcrumbs)
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
  • 1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
  • 1 lg egg, beaten
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tsp worcestershire
  • 1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper

For the tomato sauce:

  • 3 tbsps butter
  • 1 medium yellow onion, halved
  • 1 clove garlic, smashed
  • 2 lbs tomatoes, chopped with their juices (or a 28oz can tomatoes)
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • fresh ground pepper
  • 1 tsp granulated sugar (only if necessary)

To finish:

  • fresh grated parmesan cheese
  • fresh basil leaves
  • red pepper flakes

Instructions

For the meatballs

  1. Preheat the oven to 350F/177C. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

  2. In a small saute pan, heat the olive oil and sweat the onions, covered, until soft. Then add the minced garlic and cook about a minute more until fragrant. Set aside to cool.

  3. In a large bowl, add the ground beef, shredded zucchini (make sure it's drained really well in a clean towel,) and the rest of the meatball ingredients. Add the sauteed onions and garlic to the bowl and using clean hands gently mix everything together until well combined.

  4. Use an ice cream scoop (my preferred method) or a spoon and scoop out even-sized rounds and form into balls. Set onto the sheet pan lined with parchment paper, with a little space in between each one. (I get about 30 ping pong-sized balls.)

  5. Bake in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes, until browned on top. Rotate the pan halfway through baking. Set aside until ready to put in the sauce.

For the sauce:

  1. While the meatballs are baking, quickly put together the tomato sauce by adding the butter to a large saucepan. Melt the butter then add the crushed garlic until frangant and place the onion halves, cut side down in the pan and the tomatoes with their juices. Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat, then turn it down and simmer for about 40 minutes. (Cover the pan partially if it thickens too much.)

  2. Cook for about 40 minutes until the tomatoes have cooked down to a sauce and the onion is soft. (When the sauce is almost through cooking, bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook pasta according to package instructions. Reserve a little of the cooking liquid, then drain.)

  3. Once the sauce is finished cooking, season with salt and pepper if necessary and if the tomatoes aren't at peak flavor, stir in the sugar. Then, remove the onion, and use an immersion blender to puree the sauce. Add the onion halves back in if desired.

To assemble the spaghetti and meatballs:

  1. Carefully place the meatballs, (reserving some for another meal if desired,) in a bowl and ladle a bit of the sauce over the meatballs and turn gently to coat just a little.

  2. Add the cooked spaghetti to the pan with the rest of the sauce, and toss to coat, adding a bit of the reseved cooking liquid if needed to thin out. Nestle the sauced meatballs into the pasta. Grate some fresh parm on top and tear plenty of fresh basil over the pasta. Garnish with red pepper flakes if desired and enjoy while hot. (*Alternatively, add the spaghetti to a large serving platter if desired, then the meatballs then the garnishes if you prefer to present it that way. )