Goodfellas Recipe

MILLY'S MEATBALLS

My mother used three-quarters of a pound of ground veal in her meatballs. Ground veal is hard to find and expensive, but it makes a lovely flavored, tender meatball. If you can't afford three-quarter pound you can put in a quarter or half pound, whatever. Just keep the balance of one egg to one pound of ground meat.

If you're going to use them in cooked sauce, cook meatballs about three-quarters of the way through -- they'll finish cooking in the sauce. Be sure to check out this recipie!

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds ground beef + 1/2 pound ground pork or 1 pound ground beef + 1/4 pound ground veal + 1/4 pound ground pork (See Notes, below)

• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh basil
• 1/4 cup chopped white or brown onions or shallots
• 3 cloves of garlic, chopped fine
• 1/4 cup grated fresh Romano or Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup dried, seasoned bread crumbs
• 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper (to taste)
• 2 tablespoons chopped canned tomatoes, tomato sauce, or Basic Tomato Sauce (optional)
• 3 tablespoons olive oil (or more if needed)

Instructions:

Combine ground meats in a large bowl and mix together will with your hands. Add in eggs one at a time, mixing after each addition. Add in all other ingredients except tomatoes or sauce or olive oil, and combine to form a mixture that is soft but still sticks together. If meatballs are too hard or dry, add chopped tomatoes or sauce.

Heat olive oil in frying pan. Place a small bowl of water and a plate near meatball mixture. While oil is heating, roll approximately 3 tablespoons of meatball mixture at time into walnut-size balls in palm of your hand, adding a small amount of water if they don't roll well. Place each completed ball on the plate. Continue forming until all meatballs are done (you can place them on top of each other like a tower). Test the oil temperature - a drop of water should sizzle when it hits the oil. Fry meatballs in batches, turning until browned on all sides and cooked through. Drain on paper towels. Can be served plain, as main dish in any tomato sauce, on an Italian roll with Parmesan, provolone, or mozzarella as a sandwich, or sliced and put on pizza.

Variations:

1. Add 1/2 cup golden raisins. This makes a sweet meatball.

2. Add 1/4 cup chopped pine nuts. Toast them lightly if you want, but keep in mind they'll also get cooked when the meatballs do.

HENRY'S NOTES & TIPS:

My mother used three-quarters of a pound of ground veal in her meatballs. Ground veal is hard to find and expensive, but it makes a lovely flavored, tender meatball. If you can't afford three-quarter pound you can put in a quarter or half pound, whatever. Just keep the balance of one egg to one pound of ground meat.

If you're going to use them in cooked sauce, cook meatballs about three-quarters of the way through -- they'll finish cooking in the sauce.

FRESH OR DRIED BREAD CRUMBS

When I was growing up, we always had leftover ends from loaves of bread around. To use them up, my mom would put them in the meatballs instead of breadcrumbs. She'd soak them in milk often, and then push them through a strainer to make the mixture she'd add to meatballs.

If you're using dried bread crumbs, you can soak them in milk to soften, and then strain them before adding to the mixture. That way you won't have any hard bits when you bite into the meatballs. You may need more bread crumbs to make up for the soaked milk.

I usually make the meatball mixture half an hour before I cook them, in which case the bread crumbs get soft just from being in the mixture and you don't have to presoak them.