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An Italian Chef's Meatball Casserole Recipe Is a Fantastic Italian Dinner by Chef Gigi

Casseroles Beef Dinner Budget-friendly Italian Recipes

3 months ago

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An Italian Chef's Meatball Casserole Recipe Is a Fantastic Italian Dinner

The hot Italian sausage in this meatball casserole recipe provides a little extra kick. This easy cheesy ground beef meatball casserole is one of my all-time favorite recipes to make.

The easy meatballs are a combination of ground beef, Italian sausage, onion, garlic, carrot, parsley, Parmesan cheese, seasoned Italian breadcrumbs, eggs and dried Italian seasoning. You could use homemade marinara sauce, but I opted for a good-quality jarred sauce. There are so many good brands out there these days! Top with shredded mozzarella, bake and you have a winning Italian dinner.

Don't forget to make extra for meatball sandwiches the next day or the day after. Serve this easy meatball casserole recipe with crunchy Italian bread or garlic bread and a side salad. Poof! Dinner is done!

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Cuisine: Italian
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 to 30 minutes
Total Time: 35 to 40 minutes
Servings: 4 (makes about 20 meatballs)

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef
1 pound hot Italian sausage (you can substitute sweet or regular Italian sausage)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium yellow onion, rough chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and rough chopped
1/2 bunch fresh parsley, stems removed
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 teaspoons salt (or to taste)
1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper (or to taste)
1 cup seasoned Italian breadcrumbs
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
24 ounces of your favorite marinara sauce
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

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Recipe Notes

If you're not a fan of heat, use sweet, mild or regular Italian sausage.

Try this recipe with ground turkey instead of ground beef.

Here's how to make it:

In the bowl of your food processor, add onion, garlic, carrot and parsley. Blitz to small bits.
In a large mixing bowl, combine ground beef, Italian sausage, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, breadcrumbs, eggs and the blitzed vegetables. With your clean hands, mix until everything comes together. Roll into 4- to 5-ounce meatballs. (I use a medium-sized ice cream scoop for consistency.)
Over medium heat, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a pan. Brown the meatballs on both sides for about 2 to 3 minutes or until you create a nice crispy brown sear. Cook about halfway through (they will finish in the oven).
Spread a few tablespoons of marinara sauce on the bottom of a casserole dish. Place the meatballs in the dish and add the remaining marinara sauce. Top with the mozzarella cheese.
Cover with foil that's been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in a preheated 425-degree F oven until the cheese is fully melted and the meatballs are fully cooked to 165 degrees F.

Nutrition Facts Per Serving

Calories: 440

Total Fat: 20.1g

Saturated Fat: 7.3g

Cholesterol: 139mg

Sodium: 1271mg

Total Carbohydrate: 39g

Dietary Fiber: 7.2g

Total Sugars: 19.8g

Protein: 25.8g

Vitamin D: 8mcg

Calcium: 164mg

Iron: 5mg

Potassium: 1077mg

Recipe cooking times, nutritional information and servings are approximate and provided for your convenience. However, 30Seconds is not responsible for the outcome of any recipe, nor may you have the same results because of variations in ingredients, temperatures, altitude, errors, omissions or cooking/baking abilities. This recipe has been analyzed by VeryWellFit. However, any nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and it is up to the individual to ascertain accuracy. To ensure image quality, we may occasionally use stock photography.

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