- 3
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground round (15 percent fat)
- 1/2 pound sweet Italian sausage
- 1/3 cup plain dry bread crumbs
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 2 large garlic cloves, minced
- 1/3 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
- 1 3/4 cups canned crushed tomatoes in heavy purée
Preparation
Step 1
Remove ground round and sausage from refrigerator 30 to 60 minutes before cooking, if possible. Place bread crumbs in large bowl and stir in 1/3 cup water. When absorbed, blend together with eggs, garlic, 1/4 cup grated Romano, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
Preheat oven to 425°F. Add meats to bread crumb mixture and combine well with fork. Form into 12 even balls. Lay in 1 layer in 8 x 14-inch baking dish so each is separated by about 1 inch.
Stir 1/4 cup water into crushed tomatoes and season with 1/8 teaspoon salt and pepper to taste. Pour tomatoes over and around meatballs. Sprinkle tops with remaining 1 1/3 tablespoons grated Romano. Bake in center of oven until meatballs are just cooked through, about 18 minutes. Serve hot.
A note from Gourmet's food editors:
We substituted ground sirloin for the ground round in this recipe and added 1/8 teaspoon salt to the meat mixture and 1/8 teaspoon salt to the sauce. We recommend baking the meatballs in a 13- by 9-inch glass baking dish until they are just cooked through, 18 to 22 minutes.