First off, let me start by saying that while I'm going to give you the recipe to make your own meatballs courtesy of Rachael Ray, I have a corner-cutting suggestion. Anyone who's eaten at our house knows that I seldom do the store-bought thing, but this is a place where it's both economical and time saving for essentially the same results. If you don't have time to make your meatballs, Whole Foods has them pre-made at the meat counter for $5.49/lb. You aren't going to get off much cheaper buying the ingredients and making them yourself.
For the marinara sauce I started with Rachael Ray's 5-minute marinara recipe and then kicked it up a notch, you'll see my notes on the recipe below. I also totally altered the rest of the ingredients as you'll see below.
Meatballs:
- 1 1/2 pounds ground sirloin
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 1 cup (3 handfuls), Italian bread crumbs
- 1 medium onion, chopped fine
- 4 cloves garlic, crushed and minced
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 teaspoons (several drops) Worcestershire sauce,
- 1/4 cup (a couple of handfuls) flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped
- 1/4 cup (a couple of handfuls) grated Parmigiano or Romano
- Coarse salt and black pepper
5-Minute Marinara:
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, (2 turns around the pan)
- 4 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (I doubled this because I like a zestier sauce)
- A handful flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped, about 2 tablespoons
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano (again, I doubled for more flavor)
- 1 (28 ounces) can crushed tomatoes (I used the fire-roasted kind)
- 1 (14 ounces) can chunky style crushed tomatoes (I substituted San Marzanos)
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Other Ingredients:
- 1 loaf crusty bread (half-size french baguette is fine)
- 1 (10-ounce) bag (2 1/2 cups) shredded mozzarella cheese
- Shredded basil for garnish
Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Place ground sirloin in a large mixing bowl and punch a well into the center of meat. Fill well with the egg, bread crumbs, onion, garlic, red pepper flakes, Worcestershire, parsley, cheese, and a little salt and pepper. Mix up meatball ingredients until well combined, yet not over-mixed. Divide mix into 4 equal parts, roll each part into 4 balls and space equally onto a nonstick baking sheet.
(If you bought your meatballs, start here!) Place meatballs in oven and roast about 12 minutes. Break a meatball open and make sure meat is cooked through before removing from the oven.
Heat a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add oil and garlic. When garlic starts sizzling, add herbs and crushed pepper. Allow oil to infuse for half a minute, then stir in the tomatoes and season sauce with salt and pepper. Bring sauce to a bubble, reduce heat, and simmer until meatballs are removed from oven. (If you have an immersion blender (thanks Boxy!), this is a great time to use it. When you've finished making your sauce, give it a zap with your blender for a smoother, more consistent sauce.)
Slice the baguette in half lengthwise and then split each side like a sub roll. This will give you four equal sized pieces of bread to build your open-faced subs on. Toast the bread under the broiler until its golden brown. Combine meatballs and sauce and about 1/3 of the sauce and pile on top of the bread. Ladel more sauce over the top (how much is a matter of preference). Top with shredded cheese and place under subs under broiler to melt cheese. Top with shredded basil and enjoy!!
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