Grain Free Meatballs (and 59 days in!)

I spend a lot of time these days looking for new recipes and learning about nutrition and alternative diets.  That's how I discovered an awesome new recipe for grain free meatballs and marinara that uses all whole foods.

These are really easy to make and actually require fewer ingredients than usual. In addition to no grain, there's also no egg. Tomato paste is used to hold the meatballs together.  I've made them a couple of times now and I like adding shredded/chopped carrots to the meatballs to help stretch the meat and get another veggie in there.  You cook the meatballs right in the marina sauce, so the flavor is incredibly rich.  I recommend doubling the recipe, adding 1 cup shredded and chopped carrots, and then cooking it in two batches (if you have two pans you can cook them simultaneously). This way you'll have plenty to both serve and freeze.

Eddie's described these as, "Not your ordinary meatballs...they're like something you'd get at a high end restaurant!". I'd expected him to dislike the new sauce so I even heated some of my regular homemade sauce -- he never even touched that stuff.

Homemade Meatballs and Marinara

Serves 6

For the marinara:
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 large tomatoes, chopped
1 teaspoon sea salt

For the meatballs:
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 1/4 cup shredded Pecorino Romano cheese
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup shredded basil leaves

Directions:
Place garlic and olive oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Cook until garlic begins to sizzle and is fragrant. Add tomatoes and salt. Simmer sauce for 10 minutes.

Place beef, tomato paste, 1 cup cheese, seasoning, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Using your hands, massage the meat until ingredients are incorporated. Form meat into golf-size balls and place on a large baking sheet. When all of the meatballs have been formed, place the meatballs into the simmering sauce. Cook for about 10 minutes, until meatballs are cooked through. Top with basil and remaining cheese. Serve immediately.

recipe borrowed from: http://www.deliciouslyorganic.net/