Creamy Tomato Basil Meatballs

Jared informed me that this is probably one of his favorite recipes that I make. Not surprising since it a) falls in the Italian food category b) has a tomato based sauce and c) has some form of cheese in it. :) It's fairly easy to make and it really makes two meals at once since half of the batch can be frozen.


Prep: Heat oven to 400 degrees - line a cookie sheet w/ foil and spray
Ingredients:

1.5 lb ground beef
1 pack stuffing mix

1 1/4 c water

1 egg

4 oz. cream cheese

24 oz. spaghetti sauce

2 T basil

Making the Meatballs:
1. Combine ground beef, stuffing mix, water, and egg together in a bowl. Mix well.

2. Form meatballs (about a tablespoon worth) and place on cookie sheet.

3. Cook for 16-18 minutes or until done.

Making the Sauce:

1. Pour spaghetti sauce into skillet and heat on medium heat.

2. Cube cream cheese and place in sauce. (If you don't cube the cream cheese it can be difficult to get it to mix well)

3. Add basil to sauce mix.

4. Add meatballs once cooked.

Serve over your choice of pasta. I use whole grain spaghetti noodles.

The meatball mixture will make MORE than enough. I freeze half the batch for later use. To reheat frozen batch, I thaw at room temperature, pop them in the oven for a bit, and then place in sauce.

*New at the whole blog...forgot to take a picture of the finished product!