We're back at it after a long stretch of inactivity. It doesn't mean we stopped cooking tasty things during all those months, but laziness sometimes wreaks havoc... However, as a good friend once said, you have to defeat laziness. So, with the intention of picking up this little recipe collection again, Pics&Cakes is back in action. That said, since our official photographer is pretty busy these days, the photos might not do justice to the delicious things we'll be making. Apologies in advance.

And without further ado, today a traditional and simple recipe for homemade meatballs.

What do we need?

  • 500 g (1.1 lb) ground beef
  • 1 egg
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 2 slices of whole wheat sandwich bread
  • 100 ml (about 1/2 cup) milk
  • Salt
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • Flour and olive oil (for coating and frying, respectively)
  • 2 onions
  • 4 carrots
  • 1/2 glass (about 120 ml / 1/2 cup) white wine
  • 1 tablespoon flour
  • Salt and Provençal herbs

How do we make it?

  1. Place the ground beef in a bowl and add the bread (previously soaked in milk), the egg, the olive oil, the crushed garlic, and salt to taste. Mix well with your hands.
  2. Shape into balls the size of a ping-pong ball, or whatever size you prefer. Lightly coat with flour and set aside on a plate.
  3. For the sauce, chop the onions and carrots and sauté them in a pan with a little olive oil and salt.
  4. Once they get a bit of color, add the flour and the white wine. Stir and lower the heat. Let cook for about 20 minutes, adding water if needed.
  5. Heat oil in a pan and fry the meatballs until they're golden on the outside. They don't need to be fully cooked through, because we'll finish cooking them later in the sauce. Transfer them to a plate lined with paper towels and set aside.
  6. To finish, blend the sautéed vegetables with a hand blender or food processor so it comes together as a sauce. Add the meatballs and cook over low heat for about 10 minutes.
  7. Sprinkle in Provençal herbs to taste and adjust the salt.

Tips:

– You can make the sauce with any vegetables you like and have around in the fridge. In our case, we had a surplus of carrots...

– You can serve them with French fries. For those, I recommend frying them in two stages. First over low heat until they're soft on the inside (poke them with a kitchen needle) and transfer them to a plate. Set them aside until your meatballs and sauce are ready. Then, reheat the oil from the fries and brown them over high heat for a couple of minutes. They'll come out crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.