Smoky Meatballs on an Icy Day

Last Wednesday we had a mildly icy day, for those of you who aren't from Austin, ice, any ice, shuts down this city and the surrounding areas. The ice wasn't too bad, it only created a late start day for most of the area schools and some businesses but I was lucky enough to work from home that day. I am one of those people who just doesn't deal well with the cold, and when it's icy my limestone house seems to retain the cold in a way that nothing else seems to!












So while I sat bundled up in my house trying to keep warm and work, I thought about what to make for dinner...what delicious comfort food was just itching to be made? Smoky Meatballs with a Tasty Tomato Sauce! As many of my latest posts attest, I am an avid Cooking Light reader, this recipe was inspired by a Smoky Meatball recipe in the December 08 issue, different because when you're stuck in the house all day it's hard to get out and buy ingredients...but still good.

Meatballs
1/2 Cup Plain Breadcrumbs
1 LB 80/20 Ground Beef
1/4 Cup Finely Chopped Onion
1/8 Cup Chopped Fresh Flat-Leaf Parsley
1/2 Tsp Kosher Salt
1/2 Tsp Smoked Paprika
1 Clove Minced Garlic
1/4 Tsp Ground Black Pepper
1 Large Egg

Sauce
3 Tsp Olive Oil
2 oz Thickly sliced Prosciutto
2 Cups Chopped Onion
2 Large Red Bell Peppers, Chopped
1 Clove Minced Garlic
1/2 Cup Dry Sherry
1 28 oz can Whole Peeled Tomatoes, undrained, halved or quartered

Fettuccine
Manchego Cheese, shredded for topping finished sauce/pasta with
Chopped, Fresh Flat-Leafed Parsley for topping

1. Mix meatball ingredients together in a bowl. Wet your hand, then form mixture into appx 20 meatballs (2tbsp each), depending on size you may have a different amount.
2. Heat 1 tsp oil in a large dutch oven over medium heat. Add prosciutto to pan and cook until well browned, stirring frequently. Remove from pan. Add 1 tsp oil to pan and then add meatballs. Cook until browned. Remove from pan and set aside with prosciutto.
3. Add remaining oil to pan, then put onion, bell pepper and garlic into the pan. Cook until tender, stirring often. Add sherry, cook until almost completely dissolved, scraping pan to remove any browned bits.
4. Add tomatoes and meatballs; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes or until sauce is slightly thickened.
5. Pour sauce over individual servings of noodles, top with cheese and parsley.