Meatball Sub Casserole

From: The Country Cook

Ingredients:

• 1 loaf Italian bread, cut into 1-inch thick slices
• 1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1 tsp. Italian Seasoning
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1-lb. pkg. fully cooked frozen meatballs, thawed
• 1 (28 oz.) jar pasta sauce
• 1 cup water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Arrange bread slices in a single layer in an ungreased 9x13 pan. If there are any gaps, fill them in with small chunks of bread.

In a bowl, combine cream cheese, mayonnaise and seasonings. Spread mixture over bread slices. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese.

Gently mix together spaghetti sauce and meatballs. Spoon over cheese. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Bake uncovered for 30-35 minutes.

Verdict:
I love meatball subs, so I couldn't wait to eat this casserole! I was a little disappointed with the texture of the bread on the bottom, though. The suggestion from the website was to toast the bread first so it wouldn't get too soggy. I still felt like the cheese spread made it too moist. I would love to make this again, and next time I would only make half the spread, and see if that kept the bread a little crisper. I would definitely give this recipe another shot - it has such great potential!

Preheat oven to 350F degrees.

Arrange bread slices in a single layer in an ungreased 9x13 baking dish

Read more at http://www.thecountrycook.net/2012/05/meatball-sub-casserole-and-giveaway.html#Db0JKXYl2iEKkOEw.99

Honey Chipotle Meatballs

From: Fast Paleo

Ingredients:

1/2 pound of ground beef

1/2 pound of ground pork

salt and pepper

2 T of coconut aminos

3 T of raw honey

1 T of finely mince chipotle in adobo peppers

Mix together beef and pork. Add salt and pepper. Make into Tablespoon-size meatballs. In large skillet over medium heat cook the meatballs until browned and cooked through. Remove meatballs and add in aminos, honey and chipotle. Bring to a bubble. Add back in the meatballs and toss till sauce is thickened and meatballs are well coated.

Verdict:

Thumbs up, although this isn't my favorite meatball recipe ever. I love sweet and spicy things, so I did like these. I couldn't find coconut aminos anywhere so I had to leave those out. I think a coconut flavor would be a great addition to this, though. I also didn't make my own meatballs, I used regular frozen meatballs. Very simple!

Glazed BBQ Meatballs

From: ??

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Barbecue sauce
1/2 cup grape jelly
36 frozen meatballs, unthawed

Combine barbecue sauce and jelly in large saucepan. Heat until jelly melts.

Stir in meatballs. Simmer, covered, about 5 minutes until meatballs are heated through.

What I did differently from the recipe:
I have made these with all kinds of barbecue sauce - original, honey, tangy, etc. but I have never used anything other than plain grape jelly. I almost stepped out and used muscadine grape jelly tonight when I made them but I was scared what flavor it would be. Also, it always takes my meatballs closer to 10 minutes to really heat all the way through. I just use the plain frozen meatballs.

Verdict:
Thumbs up! This is such an easy, go-to favorite of mine! I've been making this recipe for years and can't believe I didn't have it on this blog. It's the type of recipe that you can make at the last minute and you pretty much always have at least the BBQ sauce and jelly on hand anyway. Definitely recommend this one for parties and appetizers!