Linguine with Meatballs in Blush Tomato Asiago Sauce. Juicy, tender meatballs in a deeply flavourful tomato sauce complemented with cream & asiago cheese.
Linguine with Meatballs in Blush Tomato Asiago Sauce
Originally published Feb 2010.
We make several versions of pasta and meatballs at our house but I think this one is my personal favourite. I love the addition of Italian Sausage to the tender meatballs for an exceptional flavour boost.
A batch of my homemade Italian Sausage!
The mix of herbs is terrific too and the fennel seed in the sauce reflects the flavour of the sausage in the meatballs.
A little whipping cream added at the end gives just a touch of added richness but it is an optional ingredient if you prefer.
Asiago Cheese.
The asiago cheese is slightly milder and softer than Parmesan and adds even more rich flavour to the sauce. If asiago is not available Parmesan or Romano cheese will make perfectly acceptable substitutes.
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Linguine with Meatballs in Blush Tomato Asiago Sauce
Linguine with Meatballs in Blush Tomato Asiago Sauce. Juicy, tender meatballs in a deeply flavourful tomato sauce complemented with cream & asiago cheese.
Ingredients
For the meatballs:
- 1 cup coarse bread crumbs
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 pound Italian sausage meat
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp ground thyme
- 1 tsp dry oregano
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tbsp olive oil for frying
For the sauce
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- ½ minced medium onion
- 3 cloves minced garlic
- 4 ounces smoked bacon chopped into small pieces and fully cooked to crisp
- 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
- 19 oz can plain tomato sauce
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 tsp oregano
- 2 tsp basil
- 2 tsp fennel seed or ground fennel seed
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1/2 cup whipping cream
- 3/4 cup grated asiago cheese
- Chopped basil for garnish
- 1 pound dry linguine noodles cooked to al dente in salted water and drained.
- Instructions
Instructions
To prepare the meatballs
- Mix together the breadcrumbs and milk until well combined.
- Set aside for five minutes before adding the sausage, ground beef, egg, thyme, oregano, salt and pepper.
- Form into 1 ½ inch balls and fry in the 3 tbsp olive oil over medium heat to brown them on all sides.
To prepare the sauce
- Sauté together the olive oil, onion and garlic until the onions have softened but not browned. Add all of the remaining ingredients EXCEPT the whipping cream and asiago cheese.
- Simmer very slowly for about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally, before adding the meatballs for an additional 10 minutes.
- Just before serving finish the sauce by adding the whipping cream and asiago cheese.
- Simmer while stirring for 5 minutes.
- Serve over cooked linguine. Top with grated asiago cheese and chopped fresh basil.
Notes
- Season the meatballs and very lightly. There is plenty of salt in the cheese, bacon and sausage to sufficiently season the dish.
- Calorie count does include the pasta.
Nutrition Information
Yield
8Serving Size
8 servingsAmount Per Serving Calories 788Total Fat 51gSaturated Fat 18gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 32gCholesterol 144mgSodium 975mgCarbohydrates 40gFiber 6gSugar 10gProtein 42g
The nutritional information provided is automatically calculated by third party software and is meant as a guideline only. Exact accuracy is not guaranteed. For recipes where all ingredients may not be used entirely, such as those with coatings on meats, or with sauces or dressings for example, calorie & nutritional values per serving will likely be somewhat lower than indicated.
Federica
Wednesday 10th of February 2010
mmmm..che buone!! ciao!