Baked Italian Meatballs, easiest recipe you’ll find

Italian meatballs are probably the most famous type of meatballs out there. It’s no wonder why considering that they can be eaten alone, are a great addition to a spaghetti, divine in meatball sub, or as an add-on to pizza, mac and cheese or anything in between.

The most popular ways to cook meatballs are either browning them in a pan and then cooking in a sauce, or just cooking them in the sauce from the start. While I enjoyed both ways I often find that the meatballs flavor the sauce too much and release a good amount of fat into it.  All of that is fine if you like it, but I like my sauce to be pure, free of outside flavors. That’s why I like to bake my meatballs. Try it with my marinara sauce.

First start with the meat. Put in a pound of ground beef (chuck works great here) into a large bowl. Add a half a cup of Italian breadcrumbs  without cheese (if using with cheese add a little more, and then add less cheese). Half a cup of water, half a cup of ricotta cheese, half a cup of Parmesan cheese and one egg yolk. I also enjoy parsley in meatballs so if you want to add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of chopped parsley to it. Add a minced garlic clove (or garlic powder), pepper and if you like some salt, but it’s not necessary considering Italian crumbs and the cheese are quite salty already. Mix it together with your hands until all is blended together. These meatballs will be moist and soft, so if you like them more firm add 1/4 cup water instead 1/2.

Once that’s done it’s a good idea to put the meat in the fridge for an hour or longer so everything can come together nicely , but if you’re in the hurry it’s okay to get started.

Preheat the oven to 400 Fahrenheit

While the size of the meatballs is not the most important thing you want to aim for about 20. The best way to do this is to divide the meat into 4 or 5 equal chunks, and then dived that into 4 or 5 smaller pieces to make the meatballs. Or you can always eye-ball it (one meatball should be about a half a fist) and then just reshape them when you have the number you need.

Bake them for 30 minutes in a preheated to 400 farenheit  oven.  After 30 minutes the meatballs should be nicely brown on the outside, but still soft and moist inside. If you like the outside crispier bake for additional 5 to 10 minutes.

Serve them the way you like and enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 pound of ground beef (chuck is good)
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
1/2 cup water (1/4 for firmer meatballs)
1/2 ricotta cheese
1/2 parmesan cheese
1 egg yolk
1 minced garlic clove
Pepper, salt if needed
1/2 cup of parsley (optional)

Quick Directions:
1. Combine all of the ingredients, mix well and place it in the fridge for an hour or more or began to make the meatballs.
2. Form the meat into meatballs, you should end up with about 20.
3. Bake them in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, or more if desired.
4. Enjoy.