Many people do not care to make meatballs from scratch because they find the processing time consuming and messy. Not only do they have to mix the meat and other ingredients and shape the meatballs with their hands, they think that they have to fry the meatballs, which makes a greasy, smelly mess on the stovetop.
However, this recipe takes a shortcut, baking the meatballs in the oven so that you do not have to get out the frying pan and make a stovetop mess. You will still need to mix the meat and shape the meatballs, but you can skip frying the meatballs in the skillet by baking them in the oven without sauce or cheese for about 20 minutes. Later, you will add the tomato sauce and the cheese and complete the baking time.
Baked Meatballs Parmesan Recipe
Equipment
- 9 inch Square Pan
- Large bowl
- Wooden Spoon
- Small bowl
Ingredients
- 1 pound Italian Sausage
- 1/2 cup Seasoned Italian Breadcrumbs
- 2 teaspoons Minced Garlic
- 1 cup Parmesan Cheese
- 1 pc Egg
- 1 tbsp Dried Parsley
- 1 cup Mozzarella Cheese
- 15 ounces Tomato Sauce from a can
- 1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- Spray a nine-inch square pan with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, mix together the Italian seasoned breadcrumbs, the egg, the Parmesan cheese, and the parsley. Stir well with a fork.
- Using your hands or a wooden spoon, add in the meat. Gently work the meat until all of the ingredients are combined, but do not overwork the meat.
- Using your hands, roll out twelve meatballs, each one slightly larger than the size of a walnut.
- Place each one in the baking pan, several inches from the others
- Place the pan in the center of the preheated oven and bake the meatballs for about twenty minutes.
- While the meatballs are baking, you can prepare the tomato sauce.
- In a small bowl, mix together the tomato sauce and the Italian seasoning. Set this aside.
- When the meatballs have baked the required twenty minutes, remove them from the oven. Drain off as much of the grease that you can, using a paper towel to blot it out of the pan.
- Pour the tomato sauce over and around the meatballs. You can scoot the meatballs closer together if you wish.
- Sprinkle the cheese over the meatballs, doing your best to evenly distribute it.
- Return the pan of meatballs to the oven and bake for another twenty minutes.
- Serve the meatballs over pasta or rice cooked according to package instructions.
Notes
April Freeman enjoys creating all kinds of recipes for her friends and family from her country kitchen in Middle Tennessee. She and her family raise beef cattle, chickens, and all sorts of fruits and veggies on their farm, and she specializes in featuring farm-fresh foods in the recipes that she creates and serves. April says that her slogan is “Are you hungry?” and she feels that one way of showing love and connecting with others is to serve delicious favorite foods to others. Her favorite thing to cook is pies of all kinds.
