Sunday, November 18, 2007

November 13, 2007 Meatballs 101

Easy Tastebud Delights
11.13 Edition (November 13, 2007)
Easy Recipes
45 minutes+

Hi Everyone! I hope your Tuesday is going well.

Over the weekend, I did some reading up on freezer cooking and made up a few precooked packages of hamburger meat for sauces, chilis, tacos or lasagna, 3 meals of skinless boneless chicken breast that I will be preparing tomorrow then freezing and 1 package of chicken fingers that I put together yesterday and froze. What a great feeling to be this far ahead! My next project will be meatballs and meatloaves. I've been buying the frozen meatballs and although they are convenient to have on hand, they tend to get expensive especially when ground beef is on sale.

The information for these meatballs was found in Betty Crocker's Hamburger Cookbook from 1973. Enjoy!


Basic Meatballs

1 lb. ground beef
1 beaten egg
1 small chopped onion
1/2 tsp. minced garlic
1/3 cup dry bread crumbs
1/4 cup milk
3/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. fresh, cracked black pepper
1 tsp. worchestershire sauce

Mix all ingredients. Shape into 1-1/2 inch balls.

To cook in skillet:
Heat 1 tbsp. vegetable oil in large skillet. Cook meatballs over medium heat until brown on all sides, about 20 minutes, then drain off fat.

To cook in oven:
Place meatballs in lightly greased baking pan and bake uncovered in 400 degree oven until light brown, about 20 minutes. Drain off fat.

Makes about 24 meatballs.

To freeze meatballs:
Meatballs can be frozen before or after cooking, just remember to freeze individually on an ungreased cookie sheet for at least 3 hours, uncovered, before bagging or you will end up with one huge meatball.

Remove from freezer and pack in large freezer zippy bags. Label with name, instructions and date frozen. They will keep up to 3 months.

To cook frozen uncooked meatballs:
Cook frozen meatballs in skillet or oven as directed but increase baking time to 25 minutes.

To reheat frozen cooked meatballs:
Place frozen meatballs in ungreased baking pan and heat in 375 degree oven until hot, about 20 minutes or add to sauce and simmer until heated through, about 15 minutes.
------

If you have any comments or suggestions, you can send me an email with Newsletter in the Subject Line.

Be sure to visit my website .