Trifecta Meatballs

I came across the recipe for Easy Slow  Cooker Meatballs on one of my favorite sites, AllRecipes.com.  The recipe as published is very easy but I knew I could make it better and in reading the comments from other people about the recipe, it became obvious that there were a few errors in the recipe and that the meatballs and sauce were turning out both a bit bland and too greasy.

I know from watching my Italian father-in-law that meatballs always turn out better when a mix of meats are used. So, Trifecta Meatballs were born....

Trifecta Meatballs

Note:  I have a large slow cooker and my recipe below makes a LOT of meatballs (50+).  We had a nice amount left over to freeze.  You can cut down the ingredient amounts below to produce a smaller batch (although, if you're going to go to all the trouble... why not make the big batch and freeze them?)

1 lb ground pork
1 lb ground veal
1 lb ground lamb

(Note:  you can get fresh ground veal and lamb at any good butcher counter like what is found at Whole Foods, New Seasons, etc.  I found it frozen at Haggen's and used that).

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley or 3 tbsp dried parsley
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 tbsp Italian seasoning

1 medium yellow onion, chopped or 1/2 cup dried chopped onion
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup-1 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs

1 (12oz) cans tomato paste
2 (24oz) jars spaghetti sauce (a third may be needed/desired)
1 tbsp sugar
2 cups chopped fresh mushrooms
6-8oz of red cooking wine (optional)

Take meat out of refrigerator about 30 min prior to starting to let some of the chill out of it.  That will make it easier to mix, not as cold on your hands, and the prepared meatballs will be better prepared to go in to a hot oven.

Preheat oven to 350.

In a large bowl, combine meat, parsley, garlic, Italian seasoning, onion, egg and cheese.  The best way I've found to mix up ground meat like this is to just use my hands.  Mix up everything very well, being sure to mix the different meats together.  Combine the bread crumbs in to the mixture until it is a consistency that will easy form together.

Coat baking sheets (you'll need 2) with cooking spray.  Form meat mixture into meatballs approx 1-1.5" in diameter and place on baking sheets with at least 1/4" spacing between them.

Bake meatballs for 20 minutes.  Immediately transfer them to another baking sheet that is lined with a few layers of paper towels to drain them.  Pat them firmly on top with another paper towel to soak up additional grease.

In slow cooker, combine tomato paste, 2 jars of the spaghetti sauce, sugar, and about 4oz of the wine.  Stir it all together well and then stir in the mushrooms and meatballs. 

Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

As usual, my slow cooker had these completely cooked and ready within 4-5 hours.  As they cooked, I stirred them every hour and also tasted the sauce, adding the rest of the wine along the way.  I also sprinkled in about a teaspoon of red pepper flake as the sauce was a bit bland for our taste.  You could also add some red pepper flake to the meatball mixture and I think next time I make these I will be doing that to give the meatballs a little more zing.

I served the meatballs over large rigatoni noodles with fresh Italian bread and Caesar salad.

Mangia! Mangia!

Slow-Cooker Cranberry Beef Roast

Tonight I made a cranberry beef roast in my slow cooker.  This recipe is adapted from the Slow Cooker Cranberry Roast I found on my favorite recipe site AllRecipes.com.  Today was the second time I've made this recipe and I made it slightly different both times.  But both times it was a big hit with Honey-Hub and he had high praises for the adaptations I made to the recipe.

Here's how to cook it.  The second time I made it (today) I decided to add mushrooms to it for a rich mushroom gravy.

Ingredients:
1 (1oz) envelope dry onion soup mix.  I used Lipton's Onion Mushroom Soup Mix  1 (3-4lb) beef chuck roast
1 (16oz) can jellied cranberry sauce
4-6 whole garlic cloves

2 or 2 celery stalks, washed and chopped in to 2" pieces
1 cup (approx) chopped dried or fresh mushrooms.  I use the dried mix that Costco sells in the huge, tall container.
1 or 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
1 small bottle (6-8oz) of either red cooking wine or a full-bodied wine such as a Merlot or a Cabernet
salt, pepper, garlic powder (to taste)
flour or cornstarch (for thickening)

First I tenderized (not heavily... just a little bit on each side) the roast with my Pampered Chef meat tenderizer (that also doubles as a weapon in a pinch).

I then rubbed a mixture of kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper and garlic powder over the whole roast. I did a light rub as the soup mix contains salt and other spices.

I sprinkled the package of dry soup mix on the bottom of the (empty) slow cooker.

I then placed the tenderized and seasoned roast on top of the dry soup mix.  I tucked a few (4-5) loose leaves of the fresh rosemary in to slits in the roast.

I placed the cut celery and the mushrooms around the roast in the slow cooker.

I peeled the garlic, smashed with my chef's knife, and placed them in with the celery and the mushrooms.

I then took the jellied cranberry sauce out of the can and sliced it in to 1/2" slices.  I placed the slices over the top of the roast.

I put the rosemary sprig on top of the cranberry sauce.

Over everything I poured a small bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon wine.  I like these wines that are put out by Gallo in 187ml 4-packs:

Then the lid was put on to the slow cooker and it was set to cook on low.  There's no need to stir anything.  You can literally just walk away and check on it in a few hours.  The cranberry sauce will liquify and along with the juices and fats from the roast, plenty of liquid joins the wine to keep things moist.

How long to cook is always a challenge.  I have a newer slow cooker and the sucker cooks hot and quick if I don't watch it.  Every recipe I have ever followed in my slow cooker needed a lot less time in my cooker than the recipe called for.  Tonight I pulled the roast out after 4 hours and Honey-Hub said I probably could have pulled it 30 minutes sooner.

About 4 hours later, the roast was cooked.

 

I turned the slow cooker down to "keep warm" and turned on the oven for the Japanese Yams (teaser.... instructions for these will follow soon).

I pulled the roast out and put it on a plate to rest.

Using a slotted spoon, I pulled out all the celery, mushrooms and garlic cloves out of the liquid in the slow cooker.  I discarded the celery and put the mushrooms and garlic in a small bowl.

I then thickened the remaining liquid in to a rich gravy and added the mushrooms and garlic back in to it.

...and along with a Japanese Yam and a fresh roll, dinner was served!

We have more than enough for leftovers tomorrow night.

Mangia! Mangia!