Turkey Meatballs with Spicy Tomato Sauce

Jeremy specifically requested that I write this recipe down.  It was very good so here it is!

I made a pound of whole wheat spaghetti for this and topped it with some grated asiago cheese.  I got 21 meatballs out of the recipe below (I probably made mine a little big... you can get more than that).  I some of the leftover meatballs in the fridge with the leftover spaghetti.  The rest are in some of the sauce in the freezer.

This sauce had a nice spicy tomatoey flavor.  It's also a vegan tomato sauce for anyone who cares... Clearly doesn't matter to me since I served it with turkey meatballs. :)

The sauce made plenty to coat the entire pound of pasta and then some.  I probably have enough sauce for another pound.  I will definitely be making this sauce again.  It was so easy to make and so tasty!  I don't often buy jarred spaghetti sauce and now that I've come up with this recipe, I may stop altogether... assuming I have time to make this and keep it in the freezer.

I put the meatballs in the oven and then began making the sauce.  The meatballs were done before the sauce.  Since I wasn't quite sure how long the sauce would take, I didn't start cooking the pasta until the sauce was finished.  You could certainly speed the meal up by making them all together.  But we still ate at a normal dinner time even with me not being entirely efficient. :)

I want to note that I use the lowest sodium
tomatoes I can find so adjust your seasoning appropriately.

Bad lighting... good food. :) 

Turkey Meatballs:
2 1/2 lbs. ground turkey (I had 90% lean)
2 tbs. olive oil
1 c. breadcrumbs
1/2 c. skim milk
2 eggs
1/2 tsp. dried thyme leaves
2 tsp. dried parsley flakes
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl.  Roll the mixture into golf-ball sized meatballs (roll lightly... don't squeeze them) and place them evenly spaced on a couple baking sheets.
3. Bake for 35-40 minutes until cooked through.

Spicy Tomato Sauce:
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
2 28 oz. cans crushed tomatoes
1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 c. white wine (I had a chardonnay, but any dry white will work)
1/4 c. olive oil
4 big garlic cloves, minced (about 1/4 c. garlic)
1 medium spanish onion, diced
1/2 tbs. red pepper flake
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
2 tsp. parsley flakes
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. thyme
1 tbs. sugar

1. Heat the olive oil over medium high heat in a large saucepan.  Add red pepper flake and stir until the oil is slightly red from the pepper.
2. Add the onion, garlic, salt, and black pepper and saute until tender, 5-7 minutes.  Add the wine and scrape any stuck bits off the bottom of the pan.  Add the tomato paste and stir to mix it evenly throughout.
3. Add the rest of the tomatoes, sugar, and herbs.  Simmer, partially covered, for 30 minutes.  Stir occasionally.  (If it's too thin, simmer longer. Mine was ok at 30 minutes.)