This is one of those recipes that my whole family absolutely loves. Let’s face it…meatballs are a crowd pleaser. My youngest daughter even likes cold leftover meatballs in her lunch on occasion.
These would also be good on toothpicks as an appetizer at a party or a tailgate, or you could mix them together with some warm noodles and sauce like the picture. You could also double the recipe and freeze the leftover meatballs (when they are either raw or cooked) for a quick meal on a busy day.
No matter what you decide to do I promise you will not be disappointed. This recipe has been one of our family’s favorite “go-to” meals for years!
Whole-Wheat Spaghetti and Meatballs
This is one of those recipes that my whole family absolutely loves. Let’s face it…meatballs are a crowd pleaser.
Ingredients
- 1 lb whole-wheat spaghetti
- pasta sauce
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1/3 cup whole-wheat breadcrumbs
- 1/3 cup parmesan cheese, freshly grated
- ½ cup carrot, in bits (you can grind the carrot in a food processor, grate then dice them, or mince them)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons red wine vinegar
- 1 ½ teaspoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- crushed red pepper, to taste
- olive oil, for greasing the baking sheet
Instructions
- Boil pasta noodles according to package directions.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Mix together ground beef and next 10 ingredients (find a recipe for breadcrumbs here – Whole Wheat Breadcrumbs). I find it easiest to use my hands.
- Generously grease a baking sheet with olive oil.
- Roll the beef mixture into meatballs the size of golf balls. Place them in rows onto the greased baking sheet.
- Bake for 9 – 11 minutes or until brown all the way through.
- Serve meatballs on top of cooked noodles and warm pasta sauce. Garnish with extra Parmesan cheese if desired.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition Facts
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Nutrients in Refined vs. Whole Grains
All I need to say is that the second time I made this recipe, I tripled and froze two-thirds. My whole family loves these! Do not change a thing!
The comment that said took 1.5 hrs? Crazy! I thought these were super quick to throw together and my family of 6 loves the flavor of these meatballs. Very tasty! I had 3 mozzarella cheese sticks that I cut into 8 small squares each and wrapped the meat around the cheese because I was nervous we wouldn’t have enough for everyone. It ended up marking 24 meatballs. Thanks for the great recipe! Served it with your spaghetti sauce using canned tomatoes. Look forward to making that one using fresh.
Would the flavor be diminished if I left out the soy sauce? My son strongly dislikes soy sauce.
There will be a tad bit difference, but it shouldn’t hurt the overall taste that much.
Just made these meatballs, they are so so so good! Thank you! Going to make your pumpkin muffins now :)
1 1/2 hours to make and a major disappointment; these meatballs do not have a good flavor
Sorry to hear you weren’t pleased with this recipe. You can always alter them to fit your taste. – Nicole