Make-Ahead Italian Meatballs
Why I Love This Recipe
Ingredients You'll Need
1pound lean ground beef
1medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
1/3cup Progresso® dry bread crumbs (any flavor)
1/4cup milk
1egg
1teaspoon salt
1/8teaspoon pepper
1cup chili sauce
1/2cup cold water
1jar (12 ounces) tomato pasta sauce (any variety)
1teaspoon yellow mustard
Directions
Heat oven to 400ºF.
Mix ground beef, onion, bread crumbs, milk,
egg, salt and pepper.
Shape mixture into thirty 1-inch balls.
Place in ungreased rectangular pan, 13x9x2 inches.
Bake uncovered about 15 minutes or until no longer pink in center and juice is clear.
Place meatballs on ungreased cookie sheet.
Freeze uncovered about 20 minutes or until firm. Place partially frozen meatballs in heavy plastic bag or freezer container. Seal, label and
freeze no longer than 3 months.
About 25 minutes before serving, mix chili sauce, water, pasta sauce and mustard in 2-quart saucepan.
Add meatballs. Heat to boiling, stirring occasionally; reduce heat. Cover and simmer about 20 minutes or until meatballs are hot. (To serve immediately without freezing, continue as directed--except decrease simmer time
to 15 minutes.)
Nutrition Information:
1 Serving: Calories 65 (Calories from Fat 25 ); Total Fat 3 g
(Saturated Fat 1 g); Cholesterol 15 mg; Sodium 270 mg; Total
Carbohydrate 6 g (Dietary Fiber 0g); Protein 4 g Percent Daily
Value*: Vitamin A 4 %; Vitamin C 2 %; Calcium 0%; Iron 2
% Exchanges: 1 Vegetable; 1/2 Medium-Fat Meat
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Success
Partially freezing the meatballs before putting them in a plastic bag ensures that the meatballs won't stick together and lose their shape when thawed.
Planned- Overs
These meatballs don't have to look the same the second time around. Crumble leftovers and stir into chili, pasta sauce or a sloppy joe or taco mix.
