MEATBALL CASSEROLE PARMESAN

When I was in college I was still a vegetarian. One of my favorite meals from the dining hall takeout was a vegetarian Italian meatball parmesan sub. I have no idea what those “meat”balls were made of and I probably don’t want to know but it was really good. It was smothered in tomato sauce and topped with provolone. I’d look forward to Tuesdays so I could get dining hall take-out and my favorite meatball parmesan sub. Almost fifteen years later that is the only dining hall food I recall and that is my inspiration for my meatball casserole.

So many of y’all send me emails expressing how much you love the easy recipes that I share – especially the ones with 5 ingredients or less. You know what? I love ’em too!

Y’all love ’em – I love ’em…. so why not share another? I get a gold star, right? Heck, this one is so good that I should get one of those puffy Lisa Frank stickers ‘cus those were always the best.

That hidden zucchini in my low carb meatballs is my sneaky mom favorite addition. My kids don’t even notice it’s in there. If you really want to hide it you can peel the green skin off first. If you would like to substitute another veggie for the zucchini I would recommend chopped spinach. You can also just leave the green stuff out and serve this with some Caesar salad, green beans, or roasted broccoli. The low carb meatball parmesan will still work.

I’ve used frozen meatballs in this delicious dish; however – you could certainly replace them with freshly made meatballs if that’s what you prefer. When I make meatballs, I make up a whole bunch at one time for the freezer… but I haven’t done that in some time now. I’ve been slacking on the homemade meatballs for sure so for me lately, it’s frozen meatballs to the rescue.

Don’t judge – we’ve all been there. Well, unless your name is Martha Stewart….and if that’s the case, well…. I’ve probably just offended you with my frozen meatballs. But welcome to the Mrs’s abode just the same. 😉

Ingredients

• 1½ pounds meatloaf mix (beef, pork, veal combo)
• 4 cloves garlic-roughly chopped, not minced
• a handful of chopped parsley
• 1 cup bread crumbs (I used Schar gluten free brand)
• 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese (not grated) (sometimes I use grated asiago cheese)
• 2 eggs
• salt to taste
• Sauce of your choice (approx two 24-oz jars)
• Mozzarella cheese to top it off with!

Instructions

1. Mix all of the above meatball ingredients and form your meatballs-not too large.
2. Pour 1-2 Tablespoons oil on a baking stone or pan with sides and bake meatballs at 400 for 20 minutes.
3. Lower oven to 375.
4. Pour some sauce in the bottom of your dish(es).
5. I used a ceramic dish pictured above or you could use one 9×13.
6. Lay meatballs on top of the sauce. Cover with more sauce and dress the top up with lots of mozzarella! It should be covered with cheese!!!
7. Cover with foil and bake for 20 mins.
8. Remove foil and bake an additional 20 mins or until meatballs are cooked through and cheese is browning.
9. For the last 4 minutes I raised the oven temp to 400 to help the browning.

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