I cook this dish very often as it’s one of my daughter’s favorites. She is a big fan of meatballs of any sort, and if they come with tomato sauce… for her it’s the ultimate delicacy. I’ll show you the fried meatballs recipe, thus they’re equally delicious as a healthier version- oven baked. For the tomato sauce, I recommend, if you have the time, to make it from scratch, with ripe garden tomatoes (4-5 tomatoes) instead of canned tomatoes, especially in the season.
I will show you the easier method.
INGREDIENTS:
(4- 6 servings)
Meatballs:
400 g minced meat mix (beef and pork)
2-3 garlic cloves
1 small onion, diced
100 g bread loaf (leftover)
2 eggs
1 small bunch of parsley leaves
1 carrot (grated)
1 slice celery root (1 cm wide)
1 tablespoon flour
Cooking oil
Polenta:
800 ml of water
200 g of corn flour
1 tbsp butter
3-4 tbsp grated parmesan
Salt
Tomato sauce:
1 canned CIRIO peeled tomatoes
200 ml tomato juice (I use homemade tomato sauce)
2 cloves of garlic
2 tbsp of olive oil
fresh herbs: oregano, basil, thyme
salt pepper
chilli flakes (optional)
METHOD:
For the sauce, put it in a saucepan: canned tomatoes, tomato juice, oil, crushed garlic, salt, pepper and chopped herbs. Cook on low heat for 15-20 minutes.
For meatballs, mix in a bowl the minced meat with crushed garlic, finely chopped onion, bread crumbs (pre-soaked in water and well drained), finely grated carrots and celery, finely chopped parsley leaves, eggs, flour, salt and pepper to taste. Form the meatball by hand ( the size of a walnut) and fry in hot oil for about 10 minutes, always turning them on all sides; careful not to burn it.
For the polenta, boil water in a pot, add a little salt, then gently add the corn flour and stir well, to avoid any lumps. Put the lid and let it boil for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then remove from the stove and butter and grated parmesan and season with salt.
To serve, put a medium serving of polenta (2-3 tablespoons) in the middle of a deep plate, add a few tablespoons of sauce and place the meatballs on top of it. Decorate with thin Parmesan shavings and fresh basil leaves.