Sausage and Meatballs Marinara

Spaghetti with sausage and meatballs is such a comforting meal! It’s usually made on Sunday, but why wait for the weekend?! With a few time saving tips, this delicious home cooked meal can be enjoyed any day of the week.

Time Saving Tips:

• Make the meatballs the day before. You can make and bake the meatballs and sausage the day before, then add to the marinara and let simmer until fully warmed and ready to serve

• Freeze your sausage and meatballs marinara. My Grandma always did this when we were growing up. She would make a huge stock pot full and freeze a couple gallon sized zip lock bags of the sauce. Then when you are ready to eat it, simply defrost the sauce in the refrigerator the night before, heat on the stove, and serve

• Make the night before. I always find that the flavors blend together really well in the refrigerator overnight. So if I know it’s going to be a busy week, I’ll make this the night before and serve the next day, that way all you need to do is cook the spaghetti

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Sausage & Meatballs Marinara

Ingredients

Marinara

• 2 - 28 ounce cans San Marzano peeled tomatoes

• 10 garlic cloves, peeled

• 1 small onion or 1/2 large onion, minced

• 1 tsp salt

• 1 tsp pepper

• 1 tsp Italian seasoning

• 4 tbsp olive oil

• 1/2 - 1 tsp sugar, if needed*

Meatballs

• 1 lb ground beef

• 1 lb ground sausage

• 1 tsp salt

• 1 tsp pepper

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• 1 tsp onion powder

• 1 tsp dried basil

• 1/4 tsp of pepper flakes

• 1/2 cup parmesan, grated

• 1 cup bread crumbs

• 2 eggs

Other ingredients

• 1 lb hot or mild Italian sausage

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Add all meatball ingredients into a bowl and mix together until just combined, do not over mix the meat. Form 2 inch round meatballs and place meatballs and Italian sausage on a parchment paper lined baking sheet, bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown and crispy on the outside

• Pour canned tomatoes into a big bowl with a spout, gently squeeze tomatoes with your hands, crushing them until almost pureed

• Heat olive oil and garlic cloves in a stock pot on medium low heat, stir garlic and flip over until all sides are lightly browned, remove garlic from pan and discard. Add onions to the pot, sauté until translucent and fragrant, about 2-3 minutes and pour the tomatoes into the pot with the onions. Add salt & pepper, stir until combined. Turn heat to low and place lid on top, let simmer for about 5-10 minutes

• Cut the sausage into 2 inch pieces and add sausage and meatballs to the marinara. Stir the meat into the sauce and let simmer for another 5-10 minutes. Serve with spaghetti or your favorite pasta

*Note: Sometimes adding sugar is needed and other times it’s not. It truly depends on the crop of tomatoes. Even if you are using the same brand of tomatoes every time, the crops can be slightly different in the acidity and sweetness levels. If the sauce tastes too acidic add a little bit of sugar at a time until the sauce tastes balance.

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