Here’s a fun way to eat your favorite meatball, make it giant sized, nestle it in a pool of homemade marinara, top it with fresh ricotta, basil and olive oil, then just make sure you have some crispy, crunchy bread to soak up all that sauce. It’s a meal in itself and it’s so good!
I got this idea from the very popular meatball that’s on the menu at Siena Tavern in Chicago, I went there recently with a friend, we shared the jumbo sized meatball and I’ve been dreaming about it ever since.
They make theirs with wagyu beef but honestly as we were eating it we both agreed you don’t need to use pricey wagyu beef at all because it’s the combination of all the different flavors that get melded together that makes it so amazing.
So for my version I just picked up some good quality ground beef from my reputable butcher, it was 85% lean and 15% fat. You could do a mixture of meats if you like but I wanted to stick strictly with beef to stay close to the flavor profile that we had in the restaurant.
The rest of the ingredients are exactly how I make my own meatballs, I always use grated romano cheese, dry and wet bread breadcrumbs, sauteed onion and garlic, fresh parsley, eggs, salt and pepper.
For one pound of meat I made three meatballs, I feel anything bigger than that is overkill, this was perfect for individual servings.
You’ll want to form your meatballs then bake them on parchment until they set as shown in the picture on the right, about 20 minutes or so.
Then drench them in some good homemade marinara sauce topped with romano, then back into the oven until cooked through and internal temperature reaches 160.
When taken out of the oven drench them with more warmed sauce, don’t be shy, add a healthy dollop of fresh ricotta, right on top, a drizzle of olive oil, fresh basil and more romano, then immediately dig in!
But don’t forget that warmed crunchy bread it’s a MUST!
I used sliced ciabattta that I drizzled with olive oil and stuck under the broiler until nice and golden, a match made in meatball heaven!
- 1 lb, quality ground beef,85% lean 15% fat
- 2 eggs
- 1 medium onion diced
- 5 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 hunk of day old Italian bread moistened with water or milk and squeezed out
- ⅓ cup or so of dry plain breadcrumbs
- 1 bunch of fresh parsley, chopped
- ¾ cup of grated pecorino romano
- salt and pepper
- homemade marinara sauce
- fresh ricotta
- fresh basil for garnish
- In a small pan add olive oil and saute onions and garlic until soft, let it cool
- Place all the ingredients into a bow, the meat, eggs, cheese, bread, breadcrumbs, parsley, salt, pepper, onions and garlic.
- Mix well and form 3 meatballs, they'll look about the size of a tennis ball.
- Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment and cook them until set at 375 for around 20 minutes or so.
- Remove and place meatballs into their own individual baking dish.
- Drench with sauce and top with romano cheese and finish baking in the oven at 375 until internal temp reaches 160.
- Add a generous amount of additional warmed sauce, a dollop of fresh ricotta on top, a drizzle of olive oil, a sprinkling of romano and some fresh chopped basil.
- I highly recommend sliced ciabatta bread, drizzled with olive oil and placed under the broiler or in a 400 degree oven until nice and golden to accompany your meatball.
I’m Marie, a wife, mother, mother-in-law, and gramma of two beautiful girls. My passion is food, clear and simple but especially Italian food, hence the name of my blog, Proud Italian Cook. I want you to feel right at home here so grab a cup of coffee, I’ll get the pastries, take a look around and enjoy your visit! {
