55 Comments
Oct 1, 2020Liked by Alison Roman

That was an excellent story.

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Okay, I know this is all about the meatballs, but I was intrigued by the spaghetti in the photo. I see sliced garlic and flecks of green. Wassup wi' dat?

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author

I toss the pasta with a lil bit of the sauce from the meatballs and stir in chopped parsley. gives the pasta a head start on seasoning and prevents it from sticking. then you can have it as saucy (or not) as you want!

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Oct 2, 2020Liked by Alison Roman

Subscribed to the newsletter after this one. Loved the story and the recipe. Cannot wait for the salad and bread.

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author

thank you Nikki!

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I am also waiting for the salad recipe!

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Oct 2, 2020Liked by Alison Roman

I love meatballs. I’m a sucker for milk soaked breadcrumbs, but I’m excited to try the ricotta. I, personally, like the oven method for a good weeknight meatball— I cook them at 425 for 15 min and then broil for 5ish, and they get nice and brown. With that said, they’re still not quite a pan fried meatball.

I’m also really excited/intrigued by the fresh tomatoes in the tomato sauce. And I love sneaking anchovies into my sauce... I call it my Alison Roman secret 😉.

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author

its also my secret that is no longer a secret lol. I used fresh here because I had some on their way out, but really like the sweet/tanginess they bring. that said, I make these with 100% canned all the time and they're still fantastic, can't really go wrong.

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founding
Oct 2, 2020Liked by Alison Roman

So funny! Spaghetti and meatballs was the first meal my two kids learned to make from scratch without any help from me. I can't wait to show them this recipe so we can make it together.

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It was in fact the meatballs that got me to subscribe. Can't wait to make this!

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Hi Alison, do you have any advice on what ground beef and pork to use? Does it matter? I typically use 90% lean ground beef, but I want to use what you choose! And I typically use duBreton organic ground pork. Anything better? And I cannot wait for the salad recipe! Thank you!

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Hello! I’m a subscriber and have been obsessively checking my email for the salad and garlic bread recipes. Please send!! 🙏

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I’m so glad to know I’m not alone! I just checked my spam folder to see if I missed it there. 😜 Now I know it’s just a bit delayed, and I am relax my obsessive checking. 😊

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author

its here its here!

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Right? I’m dying to make these meatballs now but I want the full experience.

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author

its here its here!

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its here its here!

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I’m with the others here — this newsletter (and the meatball recipe) pushed me to subscribe. Thanks for a great story!

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Oct 3, 2020Liked by Alison Roman

Oh no...I made your meatballs from nothing fancy this and last week but I have to try these! Is that overkill for my husband who is now sick of chickpeas???

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author

no, because these meatballs don't have chickpeas!! also if you want to make meatballs twice, well, then, we should all be so lucky to be married to you.

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I think if they were chickpea meatballs, he would lose his mind, lol! I made the stew and the ground lamb with chickpeas about 40 times during quarantine and it was overkill. Gotta be careful with my new meatball obsesh.

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Your story about your meatball ex-boyfriend reminded me of this story:

The Sensitive Man

A woman meets a man in a bar.

They talk; they connect; they end up leaving together…

They get back to his place, and as he shows her around his apartment, she notices that one wall of his bedroom is completely filled with soft, sweet, cuddly teddy bears.

There are three shelves in the bedroom, with hundreds and hundreds of cute, cuddly teddy bears carefully placed in rows, covering the entire wall!

It was obvious that he had taken quite some time to lovingly arrange them and she was immediately touched by the amount of thought he had put into organizing the display.

There were small bears all along the bottom shelf, medium-sized bears covering the length of the middle shelf, and huge, enormous bears running all the way along the top shelf.

She found it strange for an obviously masculine guy to have such a large collection of teddy bears.

She is quite impressed by his sensitive side, but doesn't mention this to him.

They share a bottle of wine and continue talking and, after a while, she finds herself  thinking, “Oh my God! Maybe, this guy could be the one! Maybe he could be the future father of my children?”

She turns to him and kisses him lightly on the lips.

He responds warmly.

They continue to kiss, the passion builds, and he romantically lifts her in his arms and carries her into his bedroom where they rip off each other's clothes and make hot, steamy love.

She is so overwhelmed that she responds with more passion, more creativity, more heat than she has ever known. 

After an intense, explosive night of raw passion with this sensitive guy, they are lying there together in the afterglow.

The woman rolls over, gently strokes his chest and asks coyly, “Well, how was it?” 
The guy gently smiles at her, strokes her cheek, looks deeply into her eyes, and says:

“Help yourself to any prize from the middle shelf.”

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My husbands favorite dish is spaghetti and meatballs so naturally I had to make this for him! Buy your meat from your local butcher and have them grind them together( Special thanks to Litty City Meats in SF)

I used a small and medium ice cream scoop to portion out the meat and cooked them in batches according to size. I am all about texture and I feel this really elevated it. The smaller ones had more of a crispy edge and the bigger ones were softer/tender. I also did a mix of fresh yellow Heirlooms, Roma and San Marzano in addition to a can of San Marzanos. I love Rummo brand pasta and used their Spaghetti no.3. Been obsessed with Alison’s recipes this summer and this is another keeper!

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I made these on whim sunday as i procrastinated from work. I just happened to have everything on hand except the panko breadcrumbs but i had some sourdough so i popped that in the oven and used that. These turned out great! I will make separate batches next time as my bf has an aversion to spice but i think more spice would be lovely in these. I ended up making a meatball sandwich with these, they were a hit!

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Hi! I made these last week, and they were so amazing. I’ve never been able to make not-dry-meatballs, so THANK YOU. I ended up freezing half of the raw meatballs, and I’m not sure how I should de-thaw / cook them now. Any recommendations?

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You could try defrosting in the fridge overnight. This is probably my favourite (only, really) way of defrosting anything!

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Go glad I just found your newsletter and subscribed. I totally despise making meatballs (that sauteing bit) but pretty sure I have to make this. Like, tonight.

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I subscribed and would like the salad recipe you mentioned in the recipe for the meatballs.

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author

https://anewsletter.alisoneroman.com/p/a-newsletter-141 it's there! available for paying subscribers only.

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