Ella's Meatballs

Below is a recipe for the most incredible moist meatballs. My three year old loves these, hence the name. The secret is a grated apple, it ensures the meatballs stay moist and gives a subtle sweetness to the overall dish. I don't do a regular tomato sauce with these, but rather a creamy one made with fresh tomatoes. It seems to work better with the taste and texture of the meatballs. Make sure you use fresh parsley though as it really gives them the edge. Why people even use the dried stuff other than for garnish is beyond me, as it has no flavour at all.

Meatball Ingredients

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1/2 Spanish/Vidalia onion, finely diced
• 2 tbsp finely chopped parsley
• 1/2 tsp fresh thyme leaves/dried thyme
• 1 1/2 cups breadcrumbs
• 1 granny smith apple, peeled and grated
• 1 tbsp concentrated chicken stock (or bouillon cube dissolved in hot water)
• 1 clove garlic, finely diced
• cracked black pepper

Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl until combined. Form into meatballs. I make mine about an inch and a half in diameter, but do whatever you prefer.

At this point you can take the healthy option or not so healthy option. Frankly I can't tell the difference in taste, so I go the healthier option as it allows me to go and make the sauce and rice. I thought they would dry out, but they don't at all and still get a nice crispy outside.

You can either roll the meatballs in a bit of flour and fry in olive oil until done, or you can bake for half an hour in a 200C/400F oven.

Sauce Ingredients

• 6 medium vine tomatoes, diced
• glug olive oil
  
• the other half of the onion, diced
• 1 crushed clove garlic
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• salt and pepper to season

Saute the onion and garlic in the oil until soft. Add in the fresh tomatoes and cook for a few minutes. Add the vinegar and honey and cook for about a minute. Add in the can of tomatoes and seasonings. Bring to a simmer and allow to simmer until meatballs are ready.

Puree the sauce using an immersion blender. Add the meatballs to the sauce and allow to sit at a low heat for a minute or two.

Goes really well with rice or pasta (Really good with orzo). I've used Ruth's Garlicky rice in the photo. YUM!

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