Garden Fresh Spaghetti Meatballs

It is the tomato season! Garden fresh spaghetti meatballs, made from scratch, always taste the best! Fresh tomato sauce, grass-fed meatballs. So easy to make in#vitaclay ...

The good news is that there is an easy way to cook dry pasta- cold water + pasta to "stew" for 20 - 30 minute. No more baby sitting and messy overflows! Real Simple and easy! 

     

How to cook spaghettis in your vitaclay?

1. Add 1/2 pot water in you vitaclay pot. Add 8-16 oz. spaghettis. 
2. Set on Stew to cook for 30 minutes. Since the noodles are very long, you may let the cooker cover open allowing the pasta to become soft in about 10-15 minutes then it softens enough to get pushed into the water. Cover it on to let it continue to cook until al dente, about 25 minutes.
3. Drain excess water. Serve with fresh tomato sauce or meatball sauce. 

Make meatballs:

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
• 2/3 cup milk or beef broth
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 medium onion finely diced or grated
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp salt or 2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese preferably real Parmigiano-Reggiano
• 1 tbsp fresh parsley or 1 tsp of dried parsley

Directions:

1. In a large mixing bowl, add Italian bread crumbs and milk. Combine well and set aside while preparing the other ingredients, for at least 5 minutes.
2. Add ground beef, half of chopped onion, garlic, egg, salt, black pepper, parmesan cheese, and parsley into the soaked bread crumb mixture, and mix with your hands until just combined. Do not overmix.
3. Portion onto the prepared baking sheet. Wet your hands with water, and roll meatballs into 2" diameter balls.
4. In a medium or large sauce pan, over medium high heat, add 1/4 onion and 3 tablespoons olive oil. When oil get heated, add meatballs until meatballs are browned on all sides. 

Make tomato sauce:

Ingredients:

1. Sauté onions & garlic: Heat your sauce pot with oil, then sauté diced onions and minced garlic until soft (about 3-5 minutes). Remove from burner and set aside.

2. Boil tomatoes: Then bring a large pot of water to a boil for blanching. In shifts, drop tomatoes into water while boiling until they begin to wrinkle and peel (about 2-3 minutes). Use a slotted spoon to remove tomatoes and place on sheet pan to cool. 

3. Peel cooled tomatoes: Use hands to peel the skin from tomatoes. Use a pairing knife to carefully remove the hard tomato core. Roughly chop up tomatoes and add to your clay pot with the onions, garlic, tomato paste and pinch of salt in your clay pot. Add 1 cup water on the bottom of the clay pot.
4. Set VitaClay on Stew or Fast to stew for 2 hours. Stir from time to time to avoid burnt on bottom of pot. In the last 30 minutes of cooking, if there are too much liquids, open the cooker housing cover on your multicooker or take off 4 silicon plugs if you use our large 6 qt multi crock & stock pot) to allow more liquid to evaporate, cook for the last 20-30 minutes.
5. Season with herbs: When sauce is finished, season with salt to taste, add a dash of black pepper, and stir in chopped fresh basil. Enjoy! See notes for storing tips.
6. (Optional) add meatballs and set on stew to cook for 30 minutes.