Have you ever been to a restaurant and seen a couple or family sitting at the table together… on their phones? Not talking?! Have you ever been one of those people? Well, to get us started on the right track in 2015, our church has started a new “unplug and connect” initiative to get our families back in the habit of spending quality time together, sans screens or other electronic devices. We spend 1 day each week completely disconnected from electronic entertainment–that’s right, a full 24 hours!–and instead spend time doing fun activities with friends and family. This week’s challenge was “Power Off and Cook!”
You know we were E X C I T E D ! ! !
We completed our challenge on Friday night as kind of our date night in. It was so much fun! Definitely something we recommend if you’re looking to switch it up a bit on Valentine’s Day. Anthony came home from work early and we made dinner together. Let me tell you, second to my mommy’s, it was the BEST spaghetti and meatballs! (NOBODY makes spaghetti like MY mommy!) And you guys… I actually got Anthony to eat beef. And pork. And meatballs. He does none of those things. Ever. As my dad said (he called while we were making dinner), “Ohhh he must REEEEAAAALLLY love you!” I’d say so. 😀
- 1 lb ground veal
- 1 lb hot Italian pork sausage
- 2 shallots
- 2 large cloves of garlic
- ¼ cup fresh parsley
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1.2 teaspoon ground fennel
- 1 tablespoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- ⅔ cup breadcrumbs
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
- Mince the shallots and toss them into a large bowl. Add the ground veal and the Italian sausage, casings removed. Add the spices, salt and breadcrumbs.
- Grate the garlic cloves over the meat. Finely chop the parsley and add to the mixture.
- Lightly beat the eggs in a separate bowl and add to the meat mixture.
- Use your hands to squish everything together, making sure all the ingredients are evenly distributed.
- Use a cookie scoop (or your hands!) to portion out the meatballs as large or small as you like them.
- Arrange the meatballs on the prepared baking sheet and roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until browned and the center of the largest meatball registers 165 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer.
- Toss in marinara sauce and serve over pasta.