Get Out Your Fork & Knife

Because you're going to need them to eat this sandwich! I've made this dish many times, but it was either before I began this blog, or I just plain forgot to take pics. So I'm finally posting my meatball sub recipe, but I apologize for the picture - it looks like a big gooey mess. It was not only delicious, but versatile as well - I served it for another meal over rigatoni with a little Parmesan, and I think it would be great as a stromboli or meatball pizza too.


Marinara Sauce with Meatballs

Sauce:

1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1.5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 28 oz can tomato puree
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes (plus half can of water)
freshly ground black pepper & Kosher salt to taste
1.5 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
a pinch of sugar
1/2 cup freshly chopped parsley

In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and saute for about 8 minutes or until softened, add garlic and cook for another 2 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients, except for the last two. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 1.5-2 hours. Stir occasionally, and add sugar if sauce is too acidic. Add parsley in the final 20 minutes of cooking, and another handful for garnish.

Meatballs:

1.3 lb ground beef (That's the size that my package was, just adjust the ingredients a little if you have less meat)
salt and pepper to taste
1 egg lightly beaten
1/4 cup grated onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tbsp freshly chopped parsley
1/2 cup Parmesean cheese, shredded
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 cup milk

Preheat the oven to 375. In a large bowl, mix all ingredients till combines. Form into meatballs (Yielded about 24 meatballs. Line a baking sheet with foil, spray with EVOO non-stick spray, and bake meatballs for about 15 minutes, turning a couple of times to cook evenly.

Remove from oven and add to the simmering sauce for at least an hour.

Subs:

hoagie rolls (I used whole wheat sesame seed topped rolls)
Marinara sauce with meatballs
Parmesan, provolone and mozzarella cheeses

Place rolls on a baking sheet, and bake for about 5 minutes or less, until bread starts to toast. Remove from oven, spread a some of the sauce and meatballs on the rolls. On top of that, I tore a slice of provolone into strips, and used approximately 1/4 cup of shredded mozzarella and 1 tbsp of Parmesan cheeses on each sub. I baked them in a preheated oven at 400 for about 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Remove from oven, and sprinkle with a little freshly chopped parsley.