Homemade Meatball Subs

The new ridged stoneware

Some days I have no inspiration for dinner.  Yesterday was one such day.  So I thougth and I thought about what we had in the house and what I could make.  We had had brats over the weekend and we had some left over hot dog buns.  I hate wasting them but they often end up in the trash cause we don't use them.  What are hot dog buns good for besides hot dogs?  Meatballs. I've also been wanting to try out new piece of stoneware and meatballs are perfect to bake in it!

Poe's Homemade Meatballs:

1 lbish hamburger meat
1 carrot, finely grated (I used a zester to grate it)
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1/2 stalk celery, finely chopped
1/4ish onion and/or 1-2 chives, finely chopped
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4-1/2 cup of (homemade) bread crumbs
Onion Soup Mix (I make my own)
1 egg
Worcestershire Sauce
Greek Seasoning
Italian Seasoning

I know the celery is a bit random but I like to sneak in veggies where ever I can.  I couldn't taste it but I like knowing it's in there!  I didn't measure anything so the measurements I gave are approximate.  The amount of last three ingredients are entirely up to you depending on what you like. 

1.  Mix everything together in a large mixing bowl.  I mix by hand because I feel it mixes better.

Meatball mixture

 2.  Shape the meatballs.  I use a scoop to get meatballs all the same size, which important so they'll cook at the same rate.

3. I baked them in my handy dandy stoneware with ridges.  I know you don't have one (yet) but I used to put a cooling rack on a cookie sheet to bake them.  This works just fine!

Meatballs before they're cooked

 4. Bake about 20-30 minutes at 375.

I also made the sauce from scratch:

Poe's Homemade Sauce

Note: This is just what I put in it this time.  I often add green pepper, hamburger and kielbasa when we have it (and aren't having meatballs!)

Homemade sauce

2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
1/2 onion
2-4 garlic cloves
4-5 leaves of fresh basil & oregano
Italian Seasoning

1.  In a 12" skillet, saute onions in a little bit of olive oil.

2.  When the onions are transparent, add the diced tomatoes and tomato paste.  Mix well

3.  After about 5 minutes, I add the garlic, Italian seasoning and the fresh herbs.  Cover and let it simmer over a low-medium heat.



To make the meatball subs, I added the meatballs to the sauce and gently stirred to get them covered in sauce.  I let them sit in the sauce for 8-10 minutes since they were a little cool and I wanted to warm them up.  Then I put 3 meatballs in a hot dog bun, grated some Parmesan cheese and topped it with some coarsely chopped basil.  YUM!

Meatball Sun

You know it had to taste good cause I had a very messy kitchen when I was done:

Anyone want to come wash my dishes?

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