Red Eagle Meatball and Spaghetti Dinner

In honor of Elvis' birthday :) "According to Nancy Rooks, Graceland's longtime cook, this was the last meal Elvis ate. It's in The Presley Family Cookbook, a spiral-bound tome she wrote with Vester Presley, Elvis' uncle and a guard at Graceland for many years. It's heavy on meat and light on tomato sauce, and redolent of one of Elvis' favorite flavors: bacon!"

• Ready In: 1 hr 5 mins
• Serves: 8

Ingredients

• 1 (16 ounce) package spaghetti
• 1 1⁄2 lbs  ground chuck
• 1⁄2 cup  chopped onion
• 1  teaspoon  chopped garlic
•  salt and pepper
• 1  egg
• 1  tablespoon parsley flakes
• 3⁄4 cup  breadcrumbs
• 1⁄4 cup bacon grease
• 1⁄4 teaspoon butter-flavored salt
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 2  cups  vegetable juice cocktail
•  grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook pasta according to package directions. Drain.
2. Mix ground chuck, onion, garlic, salt and pepper, then mix in egg, parsley flakes and bread crumbs. Form into balls and fry in batches in medium-hot bacon grease until browned on all sides.
3. Season spaghetti with butter-flavored salt, pepper, tomato sauce and tomato-vegetable juice. Add meatballs to spaghetti and cover pan; simmer over low heat. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese, if desired.