Eats and Treats!: Meatballs: Round 2 & Hurricane Update

KEVIN: Just wanted to give a small update on Aimee and myself. We are doing well after Superstorm Sandy and the Nor’easter that passed through. We were without power for 4 days and all we lost was all of the food in the fridge, which is fortunate, it needed cleaning out anyway, lol! Through the kindness of friends and family, we made it through fine. To all that gave us assistance, thank you from the bottom of our hearts! We know that there are many people that need our help now to recover all they have lost, so at the end of the blog, we will post a few links so you can find ways to help those in need.

Now this past Wednesday, the day of the dreaded Nor’easter, or as Weather Channel calls it: Winter Storm Athena (really?) I decided to make my famous meatballs for Aimee. I followed the recipe I made and then realized I forgot a crucial ingredient that I used last time. Here is the recipe in its entirety:

Kevin’s Meatballs:

2 lbs of ground beef (80/20 preferred)

1 small or 1/2 medium sweet onion

3 cloves of garlic

1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs

3 Tbs milk

1 egg, slightly beaten

3 Tbs Italian seasoning

1/3 cup Pecorino Romano cheese, finely grated

salt and pepper to taste.

Puree onion and garlic in blender or food processor. Place ground beef in mixing bowl, along with rest of ingredients. At this point, I suggest making a tiny test patty and cooking it in a pan and tasting it to check seasoning. You won’t get another chance later. Mix well and form into golf ball sized meatballs.

At this point you can bake your meatballs until fully cooked, but I usually fry my meatballs in a mix of light olive oil and vegetable oil. (We like a crusty exterior). . Use any sauce you like.

I discovered this after eating the test patty. It is was missing something. I started thinking and I remembered that I forgot the Romano cheese. I was out and snow was coming down pretty fast, so I did without. The final product was good, but not great. It wasn’t a total loss. Aimee still loved it, but not as much, because I noticed she did not eat any leftovers. That was an indicator of a less than stellar meal. I will avenge my failure!!

AIMEE: Oh honey Smile They were good, but you’re right, they weren’t as awesome as they were the previous time when you had managed to completely and accurately (FINALLY!) recreate my grandmother’s meatballs. And that’s okay! Having a food blog and cooking and trying new things means we will run into snafu’s now and then. Glad you were honest with the audience and admitted your booboo. I think the readers out there will appreciate your honesty and be sure not to make the same mistake!