In response to our food discussion last night in chat when I mentioned that I would be cooking all weekend, Sooz requested my meatball recipe. The original recipe can be found here at the AllRecipes site. Naturally, I made changes:Baked Meatballs
2.5 lbs ground beef (I used 90% lean)
2lbs ground pork (I used 93% lean)
1 can (10-12 oz)reduced sodium cream of mushroom soup
2 cups plain breadcrumbs
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
3 eggs, beaten
[list type=decimal][*]Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare baking pans: line with foil and spray with cooking spray or line with parchment paper (easiest way).[*]In small bowl, whisk together eggs and condensed soup.[*]In large bowl, combine meats, breadcrumbs and cheese. Add in egg mixture and mix well.[*]Pinch out portions of meat mixture and roll into balls. Place on baking sheets and bake in oven for 30-35 minutes til all pink is gone from middle of the balls or until instant read meat thermometer inserted in one of the meatballs reads 160 degrees.
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I used a medium cookie scoop (about 1 1/2") to make the meatballs and got seventy-five out of this recipe. All but five made it into the freezer for use in other recipes later in the month. The remaining five were taste-tested by one of my canine companions. As you can imagine, she was very interested in all aspects of the preparation, baking and eventual consumption of said meatballs.The original recipe also called for a package of dry onion soup mix. I felt there was plenty of sodium in the breadcrumbs, mushroom soup and grated cheese so I left the dry soup mix out. Next time though, I'll add some black pepper for a little extra punch.Now for the Party Meatballs. This recipe was in a magazine ad (I forget what for but it was Tyler Florence's recipe) and is an easy-to-throw-together crockpot meal for a party or anytime.Party Meatballs
1 48 oz bag frozen meatballs (or your own homemade frozen)
1 can jellied cranberry sauce
1 12oz bottle chili sauce
[list type=decimal][*]Place frozen meatballs in a 4qt crockpot.[*]In a bowl, mix together the cranberry sauce and chili sauce.[*]Pour sauce mixture over the meatballs and cover and cook on low for eight hours.
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