Healthier Real Meatballs and Spaghetti--Barefoot Bloggers

February's first Barefoot Bloggers recipe was selected by the wonderful Rebecca from Ezra Pound Cake. Rebecca selected a great dinner recipe, Ina's Real Meatballs and Spaghetti. Although, this recipe is not full of cream and butter as some Ina recipes are, there were still ways for me to lighten it up and make it a little healthier to fit in with my goals. (Primarily by using whole grain bread and pasta, replacing the meat with a leaner choice, reducing the oil, adding my favorite flax seed and browning the meatballs in the oven). Lest you think I had tasteless meatballs and spaghetti, I also used a couple of tricks to enhance the flavor. You can find Ina's recipe below at the Food Network site (here) or on page 103 of Barefoot Contessa Family Style. My healthy changes are in red below and since I halved this recipe, the amounts in my changes are for a half portion of the recipe.

Real Meatballs and Spaghetti

Barefoot Contessa Family Style, Ina Garten

(Makes 6 Servings) (Makes 3+ Large Servings)

Ingredients:

For the meatballs:
1/2 pound ground veal  (used 1 lb ground bison / buffalo for the veal, pork and beef)
1/2 pound ground pork  (omitted, see above)
1 pound ground beef  (omitted, see above)
1 cup fresh white bread crumbs (4 slices, crusts removed) (used whole grain bread crumbs)
1/4 cup seasoned dry bread crumbs  (used dry whole wheat bread crumbs mixed with no salt Italian seasoning)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 extra-large egg, beaten  (used 1 egg white)
Vegetable oil  (omitted oil and baked meatballs)
Olive oil  (omitted oil and baked meatballs)

(added 1/2 onion grated)

(added 1 Tbsp ground flax seed)

For the sauce:  
1 tablespoon good olive oil
1 cup chopped yellow onion (1 onion)
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/2 cup good red wine, such as Chianti
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, or plum tomatoes in puree, chopped 
1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt  
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

(added 1 soft beef bouillon cube)  

(added 1 tsp crushed red pepper)

For serving:
1 1/2 pounds spaghetti, cooked according to package directions (used whole wheat pasta)
Freshly grated Parmesan

Directions:
Place the ground meat, both bread crumbs, parsley, Parmesan, salt, pepper, nutmeg, egg, grated onion, flax seed, and 3/4 cup warm water in a bowl. Combine very lightly with a fork. Using your hands, lightly form the mixture into 2-inch meatballs. You will have 14 to 16 meatballs. (Note: I had 12 large meatballs from this mixture)

Pour equal amounts of vegetable oil and olive oil into a large (12-inch) skillet to a depth of 1/4-inch. Heat the oil. Very carefully, in batches, place the meatballs in the oil and brown them well on all sides over medium-low heat, turning carefully with a spatula or a fork. This should take about 10 minutes for each batch. Don't crowd the meatballs. Remove the meatballs to a plate covered with paper towels. Discard the oil but don't clean the pan. (I placed the meatballs on a foil covered pan and baked them for about 25 minutes in a 425 degree oven until browned)

For the sauce, heat the olive oil in the same pan. (Because I baked my meatballs instead of browning them in oil, to add some extra flavor to the sauce I crumbled a soft texture beef bouillon cube into the pan with the olive oil to cook the onions). Add the onion and saute over medium heat until translucent, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the wine and cook on high heat, scraping up all the brown bits in the pan, until almost all the liquid evaporates, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, parsley, salt, and pepper.


Return the meatballs to the sauce, cover, and simmer on the lowest heat for 25 to 30 minutes, until the meatballs are cooked through. Serve hot on cooked spaghetti and pass the grated Parmesan.

Notes/Results: Yum! I have never really craved spaghetti and meatballs but this recipe could become crave-worthy, especially now that it's healthier. Although I am sure Ina's recipe is delicious, the changes I made did not have a negative impact, there was a ton of flavor, great texture, and most importantly I felt better eating it. First off, I used ground bison for the meatballs because of it's rich taste, less fat and extra iron and protein. The whole-grain bread and dry wheat crumbs (with no-salt added Italian flavoring) were not too heavy and the flax seed is not at all noticeable. Since I planned on baking the meatballs rather than frying them, I wanted to boost the flavor and moisture level so I ground up an onion and added it to the mixture. Baking the meatballs made a lot of the oil unnecessary but I was concerned that the sauce would lose some of the flavor from the browned meat bits so I added a beef bouillon cube to the olive oil used to cook the onion (since the cube had salt, I didn't need to add extra to the sauce), and a teaspoon of crushed red peppers for a little flavor kick. Served on some whole-wheat spaghetti with a little grated Parmesan and a side of salad, this was a healthy, delicious dinner and I actually wished I had made the whole batch! I will make this again.

Great pick Rebecca--I loved this one! You can see what the other Barefoot Bloggers thought of their Real Meatballs and Spaghetti and find out how to join Barefoot Bloggers at the BB site here.