Low and Slow Meatballs and Spaghetti

Recently. I made this dish for a family or 5 that my handsome half and I had invited over for dinner.  The date we’d chosen to have them over was filled with some other activities, so I put this on in the morning and an hour before they were to arrive, I finished pulling dinner together.  Easiest thing ever. And, everyone seemed to really enjoy the meal.  My handsome half – who usually doesn’t like leftovers – specifically asked for leftovers the next night!

If you do have leftovers, the meatballs and sauce freezes well. And, actually so will the spaghetti.

Low and Slow Meatballs and Spaghetti
Serve 8 

1 pound of  ground beef

1 pound of ground pork or ground sausage

¼ cup grated Parmesan

¼ cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs

1 TBSP. dried or fresh parsley

2 TBSPS. dried Fine Herbes

2 tsps. jarred minced garlic or 2fresh garlic cloves, minced

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. salt

¼ tsp. pepper

2 eggs, beaten

2 TBSP. olive oil

1 28 ounce can (or 2 14 ounce cans) of DRAINED fire roasted tomatoes

1 28 ounce can (or 2 14 ounce cans) of tomato puree

1 tsp. dried basil

¼ tsp. crushed or ground red pepper

1 tsp. salt

2 tsp. sugar

1 pound spaghetti

In a large mixing bowl, combine beef, pork, Parmesan, bread crumbs, parsley, garlic powder, salt, pepper, eggs, garlic cloves and olive oil.  Form into 2 dozen balls.

In a slow cooker, combine tomatoes, puree, basil, red pepper, salt and sugar.  Add meatballs, cover and cook on low for 6 hours.

After cooking meatballs and sauce for 6 hours, remove meatballs from sauce and set aside. Remove sauce from crock pot and place in a medium sized bowl.  Place bowl in the freezer for 30 – 45 minutes to allow any fat to congeal. Remove sauce from freezer and then skim the fat from the sauce and discard. OR, drop several ice cubes into the sauce after you remove the meatballs. The fat should cling to the ice cubes making it easier and faster to skim the fat and cubes off with a ladle and discard. Put sauce and meatballs back into the crock pot on “low” for 1 hour (if you have cooled the sauce in the freezer to remove the fat) until heated through. OR, if you have used the ice cube method to skim off the extra fat, put the crock pot on “warm” until ready to serve.

Cook spaghetti according to package directions. When done, drain and place desired amount of spaghetti on a plate(s) and top with sauce, meatballs and extra Parmesan cheese if desired.