Does it get more classic than this?
But does it also get more varied and sometimes really icky too? Often greasy, heavy and overly-breaded are these Italian-Nonna staples.
This recipe mimics none of that ick. (Not the Nonna bit - because I love Nonnas).
Probably the trickiest part about balancing Italian classics and a simple wholefoods lifestyle is - time.
The greatest sauces take sometimes an entire day to bubble, reduce and settle into magnificence.
Fantastic for those with time however, I wanted to recreate this signature Italian dish for those of us living busy lives - in less time and with less ingredients - though still delicious.
Always my plan.
I also wanted to remove the breading from these meatballs so that my gluten-free friends can play along at home and also provide this recipe with a much-needed lightness.
As is also an aim of mine when creating recipes, it means these meatballs are not strictly made for spaghetti! Use them as the protein in tomorrow's work lunch, in a salad, sandwich, wrap, or eat them alone as I do - so much yum.
- 1 cup almond meal
- ½ cup almond milk
- 3 small garlic cloves
- 250g beef mince
- 250g pork mince
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- Salt and pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, to cook
- 1 red onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- ¼ cup fresh parsley leaves
- (+2 teaspoons to serve)
- 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, to cook
- 2 quality tinned tomatoes
- Salt and pepper
- 1 packet spaghetti of your choosing (see below notes)
- Pecorino or parmesan cheese, to serve
- Combine almond meal and milk in a large mixing bowl and leave to absorb for a few minutes
- Once ready, crush in garlic and add mince, eggs, thyme and seasoning
- Roll tablespoon size balls from the mixture
- Heat oil in a large frypan on med-high heat
- Once hot, cook meatballs for 5 or so minutes until browned
- Remove meatballs from the heat and set aside
- Finely dice onion and crush garlic
- Finely chop parsley and rosemary
- Add oil, onion and garlic to a clean large frypan on med-high heat
- Once aromatic and tender, add tomatoes, herbs and seasoning to taste
- Mix well to combine, add meatballs and turn to a simmer
- Cook for 15 minutes or until sauce is thickening and meatballs are cooked through
- Whilst sauce is cooking, heat a large saucepan on high heat
- Once rapidly boiling, add spaghetti and cook to al dente
- Serve cooked spaghetti with meatballs, sauce, herbs and cheese
When serving with pasta, use any kind that you like – be it homemade, spelt, wholemeal, buckwheat or even zoodles!
Make this recipe your own and bottom line, enjoy its deliciousness immediately.
If you love it, why not share it with someone else? Let's face it, we could all use some extra food inspiration!
