(Slow Cooker) Meatballs with Sauce

From meatball cupcakes to Crockpot meatballs....Enjoy (and sorry for the delay in posting. It's been a busy week!).

Ingredients:

For the meatballs:
3/4 lb ground beef
1 sweet Italian sausage link (casing removed)
1 cup bread crumbs
2 tablespoon fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1 egg, beaten

Remaining Ingredients:
½ large onion, chopped
16 oz (2 cups) of your favorite homemade or store-bought marinara sauce

Directions:

Combine all meatball ingredients in a large bowl using your hands. Do not over mix. Roll the mixture into balls roughly the size of a golf ball.

Scatter the onion over the base of your slow cooker.

In a nonstick skillet on med-high heat, add the meatballs (but don't overcrowd) and cook for about 1 minute, until they sear slightly. Add your meatballs to the slow cooker. Pour the sauce evenly over the top, making sure to coat everything.

Cook on low for 5-6 hours. Serve with pasta, grated Parmesan and basil.

Swedish Meatballs

I made these meatballs last week for dinner. They were a nice change from the traditional Italian meatballs and tomato sauce that I usually make (but have still not blogged about). The recipe comes from the blog, My Kitchen Cafe. I've gotten several great recipes from there and this one is no exception. We all enjoyed this dinner!

Melanie (from My Kitchen Cafe) calls this recipe "meatballs in cream sauce" but I think they are basically Swedish meatballs. I haven't had Swedish meatballs too many times, so please correct me if the recipe is missing some key ingredient. Anyway, I did follow Melanie's advice about using only one cup of broth if you like a thicker sauce. I used just a little more than one cup and I thought the consistency of the sauce was great. So, if you are looking for a new meatball recipe, try this one. I'm sure you won't be disappointed.

I served these up with some simple steamed carrots.


Ingredients

Meatballs:
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup milk
2 T. ketchup
1 t. Worcestershire sauce
3/4 cup quick oats
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
1 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
1 1/2 lb. lean ground beef
3 T. flour

Cream Sauce:
2 T. butter
3 1/2 T. flour
1/4 t. dried thyme
1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
14 oz. can chicken broth (If you want your sauce thicker, cut down the chicken broth to 1 cup)
2/3 cup milk
2 T. minced fresh parsley

In a bowl, combine all of the meatball ingredients EXCEPT the beef and flour. Add beef and mix well. Shape into balls. Roll in flour, shaking off excess. Place 1 inch apart on cookie sheet and bake, uncovered, at 400 for 10 minutes. Turn meatballs, bake 8-10 minutes longer or until no longer pink. Meanwhile, for the sauce, melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in flour, thyme, salt and pepper until smooth. Gradually add broth and milk; bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes, until slightly thickened. If using the full can of chicken broth, the sauce doesn't thicken overly much, but it is delicious that way. If you want it slightly thicker, cut down the chicken broth to 1 cup. Drain meatballs on paper towels; transfer to a serving dish. Top with sauce and parsley. Serve over rice or egg noodles (I used egg noodles and loved the result!).

Source: My Kitchen Cafe blog

BBQ Meatballs

This is the Pioneer Woman's recipe for BBQ meatballs. She describes this dish as "comfort food to the max" and she is not kidding! Holy cow!! This is tasty, filling and yes, total comfort food. Serve this up with mashed potatoes,fresh green beans and a roll...Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!!!!!

For those not familiar with PW, she is a very popular food blogger named Ree Drummond. Her blog is an award-winning website,which showcases her photography,recipes,and documents her hilarious transition from city life in California to ranch wife living in Oklahoma. Ree just published her first cookbook, The Pioneer Woman Cooks:Recipes from an accidental country girl.

Ingredients:

Meatballs
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
3/4 cup oats
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons very finely minced onion
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
plenty of ground black pepper

Sauce
1 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons vinegar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire
4 to 6 tablespoons onion
Dash of Tabasco

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine all meatball ingredients. Roll into medium-small balls and place on a cookie sheet. Place sheet in freezer for five minutes.
Remove from freezer and immediately dredge in unseasoned flour.
Brown meatballs in canola oil until just brown. Place into a baking dish.
Combine all sauce ingredients. Pour over meatballs and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Serve with egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or crusty french bread.