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 | | These stuffed cheese meatballs are the best comfort food you can imagine. Savory and full of flavor, each meatball has a surprise of cheesy goodness inside, and served alongside a delicious tomato sauce and pasta, this is definitely a home run. Of course you could really use any cheese you have on hand, here we used cuts of mozzarella, however any other soft cheese such as feta or goat cheese for example would really be interesting, if you're in the mood for something a bit different.
Ingredients
Meatballs:
- 1 ½ pounds ground lean beef
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/3 cup milk
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon Italian herbs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- fresh ground pepper
- ½ pound firm mozzarella cheese, cut in1 inch cubes
Tomato Sauce:
- olive oil
- 2 onions, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoons Italian herbs
- ½ cup dried vermouth
- 2 28 oz cans of diced tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- salt and pepper to taste
Method:
Let the breadbrumbs soak in the milk for a couple of minutes. Combine all the ingredients except the cheese for the meatballs. Form round balls and insert a cheese cube in the middle of each. In a pan, sautee the meatballs and be careful not to overstuff the pan, and not to poke them too hard when you turn them. Once they are browned, transfer to a plate, repeat with the remaining meatballs.
Meanwhile, in a big pot, sautee the onions in olive oil. After about 10 minutes, add the garlic and the herbs, cook for another minute or two, then add the dried vermouth. After another minute, add the diced tomatoes. Let come to a simmer and cook for about 20-30 minutes while the meatballs are browning. Taste with sugar, salt and pepper.
Once all the meatballs are sauteed, carefully add them to the pot of tomato sauce, and lower the heat. The sauce can simmer but not boil too heavily, or else the meatballs will fall apart.
Serve along with pasta, sprinkle some freshly chopped basil and parsley on top and add lots of aged Parmesan or Asiago cheese.
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