PASTA WITH MEATBALLS

Pasta With Meatballs image

Carbohydrate avoidance be damned: pasta with meatballs is the perfect culinary counter to the cruel world. Just looking at a slippery, tomato-sauced tangle of spaghetti topped with juicy toothsome meatballs makes you feel better; eating it is the instant antidote to whatever ails you. The recipe here makes more sauce, perhaps, than you'd normally want to use to dress a pound of pasta, but when I sit down to eat with the children I want to make sure I'm not going to have to get up and make them anything else to eat before they go to bed. (Of course you can freeze a portion of little meatballs in sauce for easy access in meals ahead. They need not accompany a bowl of pasta. My children like them just as much with a mound of plain white rice. Who wouldn't?)

Provided by Nigella Lawson

Categories dinner, pastas, main course

Time 1h

Yield 4 servings

Number Of Ingredients 19

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Ingredients

8 ounces ground pork
8 ounces ground beef
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
3 tablespoons bread crumbs or semolina
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 onion, peeled and halved
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups tomato passata (available at specialty food stores) or pureed canned tomatoes (not canned tomato puree, which is thicker)
Pinch of sugar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup whole milk
1 pound spaghetti, tagliatelle or linguine, cooked to taste

Steps:

Prepare meatballs: In a large bowl, combine pork, beef, egg, Parmesan, garlic, oregano, bread crumbs, salt and pepper to taste. Mix thoroughly but lightly, handling mixture as little as possible.
Line a baking sheet with plastic wrap. Shape rounded teaspoonfuls of meat mixture into balls 1 inch in diameter, and place on plastic. Refrigerate while making sauce.
Prepare sauce: Combine onion, garlic and oregano in a food processor, and puree until smooth. Combine butter and oil in a wide, deep pan, and place over low heat until butter melts. Add onion-garlic mixture. Simmer, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes; do not brown. Add passata and 2 cups water to pan. Season with sugar, and salt and pepper to taste.
Simmer for 10 minutes, then add milk and bring sauce back to a simmer. Gently drop in meatballs one by one so that they do not break (make sure the meatballs are submerged); do not stir pan. Cover pan partially with a lid, and simmer for 20 minutes.
Adjust seasonings to taste. Place hot pasta in a large serving bowl. Pour most of sauce (reserving meatballs) on pasta, and toss to combine. Top pasta with meatballs, and serve.

Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 897, UnsaturatedFat 18 grams, Carbohydrate 100 grams, Fat 36 grams, Fiber 8 grams, Protein 42 grams, SaturatedFat 14 grams, Sodium 1036 milligrams, Sugar 9 grams, TransFat 1 gram