Big Beef Meatballs With Bucatini By Rachael Ray Recipes

BIG BEEF MEATBALLS WITH BUCATINI BY RACHAEL RAY

Steps:

• Instructions.
• Preheat 400 degrees F. Place a large pot of water over high heat and
• bring to a boil.
• Mix meat with the grated onion, 3 cloves chopped garlic, egg, bread crumbs, cheese, allspice,
• capers, sage, a handful of the chopped parsley, salt and pepper and a healthy drizzle of
• extra-virgin olive oil. Mix meat, score the meat into 4 sections and make 3 very large balls from
• each section. Arrange the 12 balls on a nonstick cookie sheet and roast 15 minutes until firm but
• not hard.
• Drop bucatini in salted boiling water to cook off. Drain.
• Add another tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil to the skillet and the pancetta. Cook 3 to 4
• minutes then add the remaining garlic and mushrooms to the pan and cook 5 minutes. Season the
• mushrooms with salt and pepper. Add remaining chopped onion and deglaze the pan with wine, cook off
• 1 minute, add in stock and whisk up remaining drippings. Stir in the tomatoes and season sauce with
• salt and pepper, if necessary. Stir in parsley. Simmer 5 minutes.
• Toss pasta with half the sauce. Remove balls from oven and add to remaining sauce and turn to coat.
• Serve large balls, 3 per person, along side pasta. Spoon any remaining sauce over the pasta. Pass
• extra cheese at the tables.

BIG BEEF BALLS WITH BUCATINI

Steps:

• Heat a deep skillet over medium heat. Cook the onions in 1 tablespoon of the EVOO (once around the pan) for 5 minutes. Remove the onions and set them aside to cool.
• In a large bowl, mix the meat with half the onions, 3 cloves of the chopped garlic, the egg, bread crumbs, cheese, allspice, capers, sage, a handful of the chopped parsley, salt, pepper, and a healthy drizzle of EVOO. Score the meat into 4 sections and make 3 very large balls from each section. Arrange the 12 balls on a nonstick cookie sheet and roast for 15 minutes until firm but not hard.
• Drop the bucatini in the salted boiling water and cook until al dente. Drain the pasta.
• While the pasta and meatballs are cooking, heat another tablespoon of EVOO in the skillet in which the onions were cooked. Add the pancetta and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, then add the remaining garlic and the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes. Season the mushrooms with salt and pepper. Add the remaining onions back and deglaze the pan with the red wine, cook for 1 minute, add the beef stock, and whisk up any brown bits. Stir in the tomatoes and season the sauce with salt and pepper. Stir in the remaining parsley. Simmer for 5 minutes.
• Toss the pasta with half the sauce. Remove the meatballs from the oven and add to the remaining sauce, turning to coat. Serve 3 meatballs per person alongside the pasta. Spoon any remaining sauce over the pasta. Pass extra cheese at the table. Serve with a green salad.

BUCATINI WITH MEATBALL DUMPLINGS RECIPE

Steps:

• For the meatballs, rough chop the cotto and finely chop in a food processor. Place ground ham and ground raw meats in a large bowl, make a well, and season the meats with salt and pepper. Combine garlic, breadcrumbs and milk in a small bowl, and let it absorb into breadcrumbs. Add ricotta and egg to the well, cheese, nutmeg, parsley, rosemary, fennel and EVOO. Add breadcrumbs to well and mix until just combined. Roll meat into 2-2 ¼-inch balls and place on parchment-lined tray. For the sauce, place a large Dutch oven over medium heat with EVOO and melt butter into oil. Add garlic and onion, heat to infuse the garlic into oil and butter, then add the tomatoes, passata, stock, salt, sugar and basil. Simmer 30 minutes, then add the meatball dumplings to the bubbling sauce, reduce heat to low simmer and cook partially covered 1-1 ½ hours, gently stirring occasionally. To serve, bring water to a boil, season with salt and cook pasta 1 minute less than package directions. Reserve about ¾ cup starchy water before draining. Drain pasta and toss with butter, a little more than half the red sauce, grated cheese and starchy water as needed to keep the pasta saucy, evenly coated, and the sauce emulsified. Arrange meatballs on a platter or bowls of bucatini. Pass extra sauce and cheese at table