Food For Thought

Lately, I’ve been trying to revamp older recipes that weren’t, let’s say, the healthiest. Sometimes this means using ground turkey instead of beef for tacos, or large chunks of mushrooms instead of chunks of beef roast in stews. Much to my surprise, I stumbled upon a recipe in Gourmet Magazine the other week (and I say this because if you saw my list of bookmarked recipes that “Must Be Made!!” then you too would be overwhelmed and take a few weeks to process them) that used ground chicken to make meatballs. Living with an intensely Italian roommate (and not the kid who turned 21, or the girl) meatballs are generally somewhat of a danger zone; if Grandma didn’t make them, they just plain aren’t good enough.

So when I told Marc, the Italian, that I was making meatballs and pasta, his eyes lit up, in hopes that they would live up to Grandma’s meatballs.  Once they were complete, the excitement fell from his eyes, and if you listened close enough, you could hear the thud as it crashed to the floor. “What are these??” he asked. “Chicken meatballs with bacon in them. They’re good, trust me.” Good ol’ Marc grabbed a bowlful of pasta and a few meatballs, and hesitantly ate them. Not ten minutes later he was back for seconds, claiming they were “so good” and “meaty”. If I can sway a picky Italian eater with chicken meatballs and easy pasta, then these must be a hit.

Whilst perusing the grocery store, I always try to look for something new, interesting, or that I haven’t ever used before. Generally, I look over a sauce or exotic spice, give it an appreciative shrug, and put it back on the shelf. Sometimes I even purchase the item, telling myself, “I’ll experiment with this and find some amazing way to amp up dinner tonight.” Let me direct your attention to my barely used bottle of curry powder, and unopened bottle of Chinese Five Spice. Not all dreams come to fruition.

Which brings me to the sauce. If you have never heard of, or eaten San Marzano tomatoes, do it. I was skeptical at first, after hearing the praises from the magazines and shows I read and watch; I mean, they’re still canned tomatoes, right? Oh, but were they delicious. The sweetness was completely unexpected, and they formed a sauce all on their own, with a little cooking water, grape tomatoes and parsley; yum.

Baked Chicken Meatballs and Tomato Pasta

Adapted from Gourmet

This served four people when I made it, but I feel like if you aren’t living with 3 college guys who can eat, it could serve 6 easily.

Meatballs

1 cup seasoned bread crumbs

3 oz (~5-6 slices) turkey bacon, diced small

½ large yellow onion, diced small

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 large egg, slightly beaten

1 pound ground chicken

3 tablespoons finely chopped flat leaf parsley

Olive Oil

Salt

Pepper

Preheat oven to 400F with a rack in the upper third of the oven.

Cook bacon in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat with 1 tbsp olive oil for about 5 minutes. Once crisped, add the onion and garlic and cook until softened. Cool slightly.

In a large bowl, combine the egg, parsley, chicken, cooled bacon mixture, bread crumbs, salt and pepper. Mix together with a wooden spoon until just combined. Using a teaspoon measure, form the meatballs and place in a lightly oiled 9” x 13” baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove and let rest for about 5 minutes before serving.

Tomato Pasta

1 pound whole wheat linguine (or any long pasta) cooked

1 28oz can San Marzano whole tomatoes

½ pint grape tomatoes, halved

3 tablespoons roughly chopped parsley

Grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Combine cooked pasta, ¼ cup cooking liquid, all the tomatoes, and parsley in a large bowl. Serve in smaller bowls topped with meatballs.