Meatballs with Spaghetti Sauce

Second week of school. The kids are finding the rhythm — or I am finding theirs, which is more accurate. Each child has a specific time of day when they are at their best, a specific time when they are most likely to need support, a specific trigger I am slowly mapping. I have a log for each student, informal, just a grid in my notebook: what worked, what did not, what to try. Ms. Reyes did this. I am doing it. It is the job.

Carla is good. She was skeptical of my communication board setup at first — different from what she had used before — and I said let's try it for two weeks and see what the data shows. On Thursday she said "The data shows you were right." I said thank you. She said "Don't let it go to your head, you're in your first month." I said I know. She laughed. We are going to get along.

Called Patty on Sunday from the farmers market — I do this sometimes, call her while I am shopping, so she can be partly there. She asked what I was buying and I said zucchini and she said "What are you making?" and I said pasta and she said "Don't overcook the zucchini." I said I know, Patty. She said "Last time." I have never once overcooked zucchini in her presence. She is preemptively preventing a mistake that has never occurred. This is Patty's parenting in concentrated form.

Made sausage and zucchini pasta this week — Italian sausage (mild, two links removed from casing), zucchini cut into half moons, garlic, a can of diced tomatoes, pasta, a handful of parmesan. Under four dollars. The zucchini was not overcooked. I texted Patty a photo of the finished dish. She replied with a thumbs up emoji, which she learned to use in 2017 and uses now exclusively to indicate approval. I put it on the blog. The thumb emoji from Patty is the highest possible endorsement.

The farmers market zucchini went into a skillet that Sunday, but later in the week when the rhythm of early mornings and student logs was wearing on me in the best possible way, I came back to that same warm Italian instinct — ground meat, red sauce, pasta, parmesan — and made it into something a little more Sunday-dinner worthy. Meatballs with spaghetti sauce is the version I make when I want to feel like I’ve accomplished something real in a kitchen, even when the week has already asked a lot. Patty would approve of this one too, provided I don’t overcook anything.

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 35 minutes | Total Time: 50 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef (85/15)
1/4 cup plain breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 cloves garlic, minced, divided
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon sugar
12 oz spaghetti
Fresh basil or parsley, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

Make the meatball mixture. In a large bowl, combine ground beef, breadcrumbs, Parmesan, egg, half the garlic, 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Mix gently until just combined — don’t overwork the meat.
Form the meatballs. Roll mixture into balls about 1 1/2 inches in diameter (roughly golf-ball size). You should get about 16 meatballs.
Brown the meatballs. Heat olive oil in a large, deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add meatballs in a single layer and cook, turning occasionally, until browned on most sides, about 6–8 minutes. They don’t need to be cooked through yet. Transfer to a plate.
Build the sauce. Reduce heat to medium. Add remaining garlic to the skillet and cook 30 seconds until fragrant. Pour in crushed tomatoes, add remaining 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning and sugar. Stir, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
Simmer the meatballs. Return meatballs to the skillet, nestling them into the sauce. Reduce heat to low, cover partially, and simmer 20 minutes, until meatballs are cooked through and sauce has thickened slightly.
Cook the pasta. While the meatballs simmer, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water before draining.
Combine and serve. Divide spaghetti among bowls. Spoon meatballs and sauce over the top. Add a splash of reserved pasta water to loosen the sauce if needed. Finish with extra Parmesan and fresh herbs if using.

Nutrition (per serving)

Meatballs with Spaghetti Sauce — The Week I Learned Carla’s Sense of Humor