Spaghetti and Stuffed Meatballs

I’m not a Rachel Ray Fan. I think she’s adorable and vivacious and once in a blue moon has a good idea. I’m not a hater of Rachel Ray either. (My husband loves her). Her recipes though are lacking. They either have too much of a particular spice or are very bland. I haven’t really found a recipe that if followed exactly was exceptional or worthy of making again. I definitely have to majorly tweak her recipes and therefore rarely bother with one.

I don’t mind tweaking to take it up a notch or to suit my style better etc. I don’t want to have to tweak to give it flavor period. I did give one of her recipes a try yesterday though. It sparked an interest. I tweaked before I even began for dietary reasons this time and while a tiny bit bland, I’m not going to blame the recipe. I think it was actually pretty tasty considering how quick/easy it was. If I were a busy mom with younger kids, I could definitely see this being a life saver meal. It has the fun elements I see the kids enjoying and its fast, which I see mom (or Dad) enjoying. It’s definitely affordable and filling. A few more tweaks (like adding some shredded carrots and zucchini for added vegetable nutrition). Me personally, I would also add some onion next time for a boost of flavor.

Spaghetti with Stuffed Meatballs

Ingredients:
¼ cup breadcrumbs
¼ cup milk
1 tbs Olive Oil
3 cloves garlic,smashed/chopped fine
3 cans diced tomato
1 small can tomato sauce
1 lb ground turkey
¼ cup fresh grated parmesan
2 eggs
Fresh Mozzerella cut in 1/4 -1/2 inch cubes
1 lb spaghetti noodles
½ cup Gruyere for topping
Salt

Directions:
In a medium bowl whisk eggs and milk together. Stir in Breadcrumbs and one clove of garlic. Add some salt to taste (about 1 tsp) and gently break up ground turkey into bowl. Add Parmesan cheese and gently combine all ingredients. Take about two tablespoons of mixture into hand. Gently flatten it out and place a mozzarella cube in center. Fold Meat up around cube and roll into a ball. Place on greased baking sheet. Repeat until all the meat is used. Set meatballs aside.

In a large sauce pan, heat up the Olive oil and add the rest of the garlic. Cook about 2 minutes or until garlic is golden. Add the tomatoes and sauce. Season with Salt (and pepper if you like) to taste and bring up to a medium low simmer. Carefully place meatballs down into sauce making sure they are submerged. Cook without stirring for about 20 minutes. Stir gently and cook for another 15 minutes.
About half way through the cooking time, heat another pot of boiling salted water. Add spaghetti and cook until al dente (about 10 minutes or so). Toss the cooked noodles with the tomato sauce and meatballs during the last five minutes of cooking. Serve hot topped with a little Gruyere.