How To Make a Variety of Meatballs

Meatballs have long been a staple of our recipe collections. They are so popular we even have the silly song about sneezing and losing them! Meatballs are great as appetizers, in spaghetti, or as an inexpensive entree. With grocery prices soaring, most of us are looking to make our food dollars stretch farther. Meatballs are one of the ways we can do that. With that in mind, here are three very different Meatball Recipes. The first combines Ground Beef and Pork Sausage, the second is made with Applesauce, and the third cooks on top of the stove. You are sure to find a recipe for your family among these choices. These are all recipes from my large collection of old fashion recipes. I love sharing these older recipes with you. It is my goal not to let all these old recipes disappear and you are the key to that end.

Beef and Pork Sausage Balls

This recipe is from a very old Iowa church cookbook, making it a meat recipe from the Heartland.

• 3/4 cup finely crushed soda crackers
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 lb pork sausage
• 1/4 cup finely chopped celery
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1 Tbsp parsley
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp sage or Italian seasoning
• Dash of black pepper

Combine cracker crumbs, egg, and milk in a large bowl. Add the remaining ingredients to the cracker mixture; mix well. Shape mixture into 1-inch balls. Place in a shallow pan. Bake in a moderate oven for 20 minutes.

Sauce:

• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• 1/2 soup can of milk

Mix the soup and milk together using a wire whisk or fork. Pour mixture over the meatballs and return to the oven for another 25 minutes or until done.

Applesauce Meatballs

• 2 lb hamburger
• 2 eggs
• 1 can (16-oz) applesauce
• 3 cups soft bread crumbs
• 2 tsp salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine all the above ingredients and mix together well. Form the mixture into meatballs. Brown lightly in a large skillet. Place in baking dish or pan, in one layer if possible. Pour the following sauce over the meatballs. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour for approximately 20 meatballs. Adjust baking time to more or less depending on the size of your meatballs.

Sauce:

• 2/3 cup ketchup
• 1/2 cup water

Mix together well and pour over the meatballs before baking.

Stovetop Mushroom Meatballs

This is an old recipe I got from my late mother-in-law. She got it from a co-worker at a factory in Bloomington, Indiana approximately fifty years ago.

• Mix 1 can of cream of mushroom soup with 1/2 soup can of water until well blended.

Combine the following ingredients:

• 1/4 cup of the soup mixture
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/4 cup bread or cracker crumbs
• 2 tbsp minced onion
• 1 tbsp minced parsley
• 1 beaten egg

Mix the above ingredients well and shape into meatballs about 1 1/2-inch diameter each. Brown in a skillet in 2 tablespoons of shortening. Pour off the excess drippings. Add the remaining soup mixture to the skillet, cover, and cook over a low heat for about 20-25 minutes. Baste occasionally during cooking.

Enjoy!

The Author:

Grandma Linda is a collector of vintage recipes. She enjoys sharing these old-time recipes with others on her blog at http://grandmasvintagerecipes.blogspot.com