Recipe Background
Mimi's Meatball Casserole is just a marvel of a Sunday dinner! Everyone is going to want to load up their plates with piles of nourishing and tender whole-wheat pasta and savory, juicy, homemade turkey meatballs, with a hint of parmesan sharpness. A blanket of lightly crisped and melty mozzarella just makes Mimi's Meatball Casserole all the cozier and more delicious! Sunday dinner has never felt this satisfying!
Mimi's Meatball Casserole is just a marvel of a Sunday dinner! Everyone is going to want to load up their plates with piles of nourishing and tender whole-wheat pasta and savory, juicy, homemade turkey meatballs, with a hint of parmesan sharpness. A blanket of lightly crisped and melty mozzarella just makes Mimi's Meatball Casserole all the cozier and more delicious! Sunday dinner has never felt this satisfying!
Ingredients
- 6 ounces whole-wheat penne
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil divided, plus more, to taste
- 3 slices whole-wheat bread
- 1 pound extra-lean ground turkey
- 8 ounces spicy Italian turkey sausage casings removed
- 1 large egg lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese freshly grated
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley chopped, plus more, to taste, for garnish
- 1 small yellow onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 (32-ounce) container tomato sauce
- 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach thawed and squeezed dry
- 4 ounces whole-fat fresh mozzarella shredded, plus 4 ounces, thinly sliced, divided
Directions
- Position an oven rack to the middle position.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- In a large pot of salted, boiling water, add the pasta and cook just to al dente, according to the package directions.
- Drain the pasta.
- Add the extra olive oil to the cooked pasta and toss to coat. Set it aside.
- In a food processor, add the bread slices and cover the processor.
- Pulse until the bread becomes coarse crumbs.
- In a large mixing bowl, add 3/4 cup of the breadcrumbs, the ground turkey, the turkey sausage, the egg, the salt, the parmesan cheese, and 1/4 cup of the parsley and with your clean fingers or two forks, mix lightly until the ingredients are just combined. Be careful not to compact the meat.
- Form the meat mixture into 2-inch balls.
- In a large, deep, ovenproof skillet over medium-high, add 1 1/2 tablespoons of the remaining olive oil.
- Add the meatballs to the hot oil and cook, while turning them occasionally, until they are browned on all sides, about 10 minutes.
- Using a slotted spoon, transfer the meatballs to a plate.
- Add 1/2 tablespoon of the remaining olive oil to the skillet and allow it to heat.
- Add the onions to the hot oil and cook, while stirring, until they begin to brown and soften, about 4 minutes.
- Add the garlic, the oregano, and the red pepper flakes to the onions and cook, while stirring, until just fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Add the tomato sauce and the spinach to the onion mixture, stirring to combine.
- Add the meatballs to the sauce mixture and let them simmer until they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F, about 20 minutes.
- Add the pasta and 4 ounces of the shredded mozzarella to the sauce mixture and gently stir to combine.
- Top the meatball mixture with the remaining sliced mozzarella.
- Bake the meatball mixture on the middle rack until the cheese is melted and lightly crisp on top and the edges are bubbling, about 15-20 minutes.
- Allow the casserole to rest for 5 minutes.
- Serve garnished with the extra parsley.
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