Italian Cocktail Meatballs

Total Time: 2 hrs 45 mins Preparation Time: 45 mins Cook Time: 2 hrs

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lbs ground chuck
• 1/2 lb ground sausage (like jimmy dean regular)
• salt & pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon oregano (not powdered)
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seed (do not omit)
• 1 medium onion, finely minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, finely minced
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 eggs, well beaten
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 dash italian seasoning
• 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
• 2 (6 ounce) cans water
• salt & pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 dash italian seasoning
• 1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon oregano (not powdered)
• 1/8 cup chianti wine (or other red wine)
• 1 teaspoon parmesan cheese, grated

Recipe

• 1 thoroughly mix all the meatball ingredients, except olive oil. roll into ½â€? balls and fry in oil until well browned. drain, set aside until sauce is ready.
• 2 combine all ingredients, except cheese in the skillet meatballs were cooked in (if there is a lot of fat, remove most of it – leaving any browned bits in the skillet). bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 1 hour over very low heat. add meatballs and simmer another hour, stirring several times very gently. pour into chafing dish, crockpot or other serving dish and sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese.
• 3 these freeze well – just be careful when defrosting and breaking them up. be gentle – so not to break up the meatballs.
• 4 note: i have indicated this makes about 36 meatballs -- but that's just a complete guess off the top of my head! i couldn't post the recipe without putting something in that field!