Meatballs Revisited and Deconstructed....Part 2.

In Part One I discussed how to tell, for the most part, when you're being served frozen, phony meatballs when you go out to dine. I wonder how many of you took my writing to heart, went to a restaurant, ordered meatballs and tested them? Were you surprised by what you found out; was it a pleasant, satisfying surprise, or a disappointing one?

Now I'm off to Part Two of this saga and the making of a homemade meatball. The best way to get a ground meat product is to have the proper kitchen appliance in your home, and make it yourself. That way you pick and choose what cuts of meat you want in the final product, grind it yourself and know exactly what is in it. For many of us, that is not an option; however, you might be able to accomplish this task at a butcher or even local supermarket. The majority of us though just pick up a package of ground beef and hope for the best, and I am one of the majority. When I buy ground beef, I tend to look for the lowest fat content available, 90% lean or higher. Why? Depending on what I am preparing, the fat leeches out of the meat when cooking; so, if frying, you end up dumping it, or if left in a raw state to be cooked with other ingredients, the final creation comes out dripping in grease. But what about flavor you ask? As with other lean cuts of meat such as bison(buffalo), ostrich and elk, you need to provide the extra boost they need.

Here is a repeat of my basic meatball recipe; if you cannot find Italian seasoned bread crumbs, increase the Italian seasoning mix to a half cup.   Do not use ground breakfast sausage as a substitute for pure ground pork; it has seasonings and preservatives in it that will come out strongly in your completed meatballs.  Use a homemade pasta sauce when cooking your meatballs in sauce. Normally I use canned tomatoes, but when the season is right and I can get fresh by the box load; the taste is so incredibly amazing!

As you read the preparation you'll notice I say to make the meatball at about a 2 and 3/4 inch diameter, but in part one I said they were 3 inches in diameter. As the meatballs cook in the sauce, not only will they become infused with more flavor, but also the the sauce itself. Remember, you're using dried bread crumbs which will grab onto that sauce and give you a slightly expanded meatball that is tender and juicy.

  Homemade Meatballs
Ingredients:

4 lbs lean ground beef (90% or more)
2 lbs ground pork
1 ½ cups Italian seasoned dry bread crumbs
1/8 cup Italian seasoning mix
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp minced garlic
1 cup diced onion
¾ cup milk
2 eggs, beaten

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray jelly roll pans with nonstick spray.

In a large bowl, mix all ingredients together thoroughly; making sure all dry ingredients are mixed well with wet ingredients. Form the meat mixture into balls, about 2 ¾” (size of a tennis ball); place on jelly roll pans.

Bake meatballs for 20 minutes; dab on paper towels to remove any grease and immerse into sauce.

Allow meatballs to cook in sauce until sauce is ready; 4-6 hours depending on cooking technique being used. Serve with pasta, or use meatballs for a sandwich.

Makes about 20 meatballs.




Making a meatball sandwich, sub, hero, grinder or whatever you call it in your region, is quite easy; one good hint is to make sure and use a roll with a slightly harder exterior.  Those softer rolls have more moisture in them, so will not toast as quickly, giving the sauce more time to make the rolls soggy instead of crispy.

Use slices of mozzarella, provolone or combination of the two cheeses to help keep the roll from splitting apart, and make sure the meatballs and sauce don't try to make a break for it.

 

...and think of it this way, if you go someplace that won't take the time to make a fresh meatball, or a fresh pot of sauce; what else isn't fresh there?

Mary Cokenour

Wagon Wheel Pizza Doesn't Roll for Me.

Wagon Wheel Pizza

164 South Main
Monticello, Utah, 84535

(435) 587-2766

Website: N/A

First off, let me state that I was asked to do a review of Wagon Wheel by an anonymous commentor on my food blog page for Thatzza Pizza, a newly opened pizza competitor for Wagon Wheel. Remember folks, I'm a pizza snob and very tough when it comes to pizza reviews. I've traveled to many places in and out of the United States, and trying pizza whenever I could was always on the list of things to do.

Wagon Wheel Pizza was established in 1984 and is owned by Susan, a former resident of Florida. When entering Wagon Wheel, it looks like a typical pizzeria with booths lining one wall and a few tables here or there. After about a 5 minute wait while Susan finished prepping a pizza for the oven, my order was taken, and questions answered, with a friendly smile. I was told my order would be ready in 25 minutes, but it actually took 45 minutes which gave me time to see some of my food prepared.



The Meatball Sandwich consists of three frozen 2" meatballs that are defrosted in the microwave, mixed with sauce and then heated again in the microwave. They are sliced in half, placed on an untoasted 6" sub roll and garnished with slices of green bell pepper and onion. Once unwrapped, the sub cannot be picked up to be eaten as it has become a "hot mess" with the roll falling apart from not being toasted. A fork is a must if you order this sandwich.


If you want chicken wings, you must ask for them as they are not listed on the menu; they come with a choice of two sauces: hot or bbq. They are baked on parchment paper, so do not expect a crisp texture since the wings are basically steaming in the fat coming off the wings and caught on the paper. While the chicken was fully cooked with a mild bbq flavor, the thick, gummy skin was totally unappealing.





The pizza at Wagon Wheel does not use the typical Utah style of crust, namely focaccia bread. The crust is thinner, allowing for a browned and crispy texture.

The sauce, while having a good flavor and you can see the herbs, is smeared thin; the cheese is thick, but not the creamy, gooey type that one associates with pizza. To get a single bite of cheese with crust, you must completely bite through the slice, or the cheese comes sliding off in a complete sheet. As the pizza cools, the cheese congeals more and the crust becomes very tough.

To be fair, I have to say that Susan was busy prepping food, checking on the oven, plating food, while her two workers were either filling salt and pepper shakers, or filling a drink order for 8 people - 2 drinks at a time; guess the employee didn't know how to carry a tray. The drink order employee then completed the meatball sandwich; was going to put it in the oven for toasting and then changed her mind. That was a big mistake in my book.

Mary Cokenour