6.21
GLUTEN-FREE MEATBALL HERO with a CAESAR SALAD
Makes about 20 – 24 meatballs
Heros are called subs in some areas, hoagies in others and all sorts of other names elsewhere! But in New York City a sandwich made in a bread roll is called a HERO!
Usually, I make a meatball hero for Peter with meatballs left over from my normal recipe for Spaghetti and Meatballs which is in the archives, January 2012.
Yesterday he was talking of how much he would love a meat ball hero and I decided to surprise him with them for dinner with a salad.
I used a slightly different recipe for the meatballs and for the sauce and served them with a Caesar salad of Romano lettuce and my regular Caesar dressing (also in archives, January 2012) which I lightened with a ¼ cup of water*, I kept off the parmesan from the dressing as Peter is so totally intolerant to lactose. But I used his vegan moz shreds on his heroes and regular mozzarella shreds on mine.
Anyhow, it was a yummy meal which I paired with Pear and Chocolate Chip cookies for dessert. They were sooo very good. I will post that recipe at a future date.
Let’s measure and prep:
Meat balls:
Ground meat – 92% to 97% lean
Baking soda – 1 t
Cornstarch – 3 T
Onion – ¼ c minced
Garlic – 1 T minced
Parsley – ¼ c minced
Bacon - ¼ c very crisply cooked and finely crumbled
Egg – 1
Broth – 2 to 4 T
Bread crumbs – 1 c fresh, coarsely chopped
Pasta sauce:
Olive oil – 1 T or as needed
Onion – 1 ½ c
Garlic – ¼ c minced
Parsley – 2 T minced
Italian seasoning – 1 T
Ground Basil – 1 t
Marinara sauce – 1 jar
Tomato sauce – 1 8oz can (I use Goya)
Chicken broth – ½ c
Corn meal – ¼ c
Assembly:
Schar bread rolls and or ciabatta rolls
Mozzarella, vegan and regular
Let's get cooking:
Mix the broth, egg and breadcrumbs together then add the rest of the meatball ingredients and mix. Form into 2 T size meatballs. In a 12” skillet, heat 1 to 2 t oil over medium heat and brown the meatballs all over. Remove from the skillet and set aside while you make the sauce.
In the same skillet, sauté onions and herbs, (add more oil only if needed). When the onions are beginning to caramelize, add the garlic and stir for about 30 seconds.
Then add the 16 oz jar of marinara sauce and the 8 oz can of tomato sauce and bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer, covered with a lid, for 8 to 10 minutes.
Nestle the meatballs in the sauce and simmer until they are cooked through, about 8 to 10 minutes and the sauce is thickened and slightly caramelized (NOT BURNED at the bottom), this gives the whole dish a greater depth of flavor making the heroes that much more flavorful.
While the meatballs are cooking, bake the Schar bread rolls and ciabatta rolls for 6 minutes in a 400F preheated oven – this is the instructions given on the Schar packages of bread. Remove to a rack and let cool for 5 to 10 minutes.
Assemble the heroes:
Slice open the bread rolls leaving a ‘hinge’ so the rolls stay together, if you cut through, no worries.
Scoop out some of the bread from one of the sides, (reserve this to make breadcrumbs) add cheese shreds to both sides, nestle the meatballs on the scooped-out side, spoon some sauce over the meatballs and close the sides together.
Wrap the heroes in foil and place in a 400F oven for about 5 minutes (more if you are using vegan cheese) until the cheese is melted, remove from the foil, let cool for a few minutes and serve with a Caesar salad.
*CAESAR SALAD DRESSING
Made with Gluten and Lactose-Free Products
Makes almost 8 ounces
Measure and Prep:
Egg – 1
Anchovies in olive oil – 2 oz can (use only some of the anchovies and save the rest, depending on taste)
Mustard powder – 1 T
Garlic – 2 small cloves, chopped
Black pepper – ¼ t ground
Lemon juice – 3 T (I use the pulp too)
Lemon zest – 1 T
Light olive oil – 5 oz
Water – 4 T
For the salad:
Romain lettuce – as much as you need for the meal
Measure and prep:
All the ingredients either into the blender container, the processor bowl or a jar large enough for the head of your immersion blender to fit through, that can be used to store leftover dressing and whir until dressing is creamy.
Leftover dressing can be saved for 7 days in the refrigerator. I have used it even after 10. Always use a clean and dry spoon to scoop out dressing.
Place some dressing on the bottom of your salad bowl, add the torn or cut up romaine lettuce and toss to coat well. Add grated or shaved parmesan cheese on to the salads of those who has tummies that don’t rebel at parmesan.
As this recipe makes 20 or so meat balls, you can assemble more ‘heroes’ wrapped in foil and freeze them (place in the oven to thaw and melt the cheese before you use) or use the meatballs and sauce with spaghetti or rice.
Enjoy!