Sunday, November 25, 2012

Meatball Sandwiches and Roasted Green Beans with Balsamic Glaze

See I'm cutting back on carbs by eating my sandwich open faced. 
Naw, I really just don't like all the bread of a big roll but after these last few days I could stand to cut back a few carbs.

As I try to recover from eating pounds of amazingly creamy mac n cheese aka Thanksgiving dinner, I'm trying to get back to regular eating habits. Which for Sunday means a hot meal between 3 and 4 o'clock. Although I included green beans in our meal, I fully intend to eat a salad tomorrow.

As you might notice, my meatballs didn't come out so "ball-like", but we actually like our sandwiches better this way and found them easier to eat.

Recipe (adapted from Bev Cooks Chicken Meatball Sub Sandwiches)
For the sauce:
1 (28 oz) can tomatoes
8 basil leaves, roughly torn
Italian seasoning
1 handful Italian flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
2 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped
Salt & pepper

For the meatballs:
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1/2 medium onion, finely diced
1 tbps. tomato paste
1 egg
3/4 cup panko
2 handfuls shredded Italian blend cheese
1 handful Italian flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
2 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped
~ 2 tbsp. olive oil
Wheat rolls
Provolone cheese

In a food processor, combine the tomatoes, basil, a hearty shake of italian seasoning, 1 handful of parsley, and 2 cups of baby spinach. Puree until smooth (There were still some small tomato chunks in mine). Taste and add salt and pepper as necessary. Set aside.

Now, combine the beef, medium onion, tomato paste, egg, panko, cheese, parsley,and spinach in a bowl. Only use half (2 cups) of the spinach here. Combine into balls with your hands (if I can do this, anyone can do this.) Set the meatballs aside.

Heat the oil in a skillet on medium-high. Add the meatballs and cook for about 8-10 minutes or until browned on all sides. This is where my meatballs turned a bit crumbly. Just keep turning with tongs until the  outsides are browned. Pour the tomato sauce over the meatballs. Turn the heat to low, cover the meatballs and cook for 35-40 minutes or until meatballs are cooked through.

To assemble, toast the wheat rolls in the oven- about 4-5 minutes at 400 or using the broiler. Add the cheese and continue to toast until crispy and golden around the edges. Spoon the meatball mixture onto the bread.

Serve with roasted green beans with balsamic glaze. I used this recipe from the Pioneer Woman and just replaced green beans for brussel sprouts and didn't add the dried cranberries. We followed the brussel sprouts recipe on Thanksgiving and they were also delicious!

Enjoy!