Turkey Meatballs & Penne
Ready In: 1 hr 35 mins
Serves: 6
Ingredients
- 1⁄4 cup plain dried breadcrumbs
- 2 tablespoons whole milk
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 3⁄4 cup grated romano cheese
- 1 lb ground turkey, preferably dark meat
- salt & freshly ground black pepper
- 1⁄4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 5 cups simple tomato sauce, recipe on this site
- 1 lb dry penne pasta
Directions
- In a large bowl add bread crumbs & milk and mix until well combined.
- Mix in eggs and 1/2 cup Romano cheese and mix well.
- Add turkey and gently combine, being careful not to overwork the meat.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Shape into golf-size balls.
- In a large skillet heat the oil over medium high heat. When almost smoking, add meatballs and without moving or turning the meat, allow it to brown for about 3 minutes.
- Turn meatballs and brown other side. Continue to cook until all sides are golden brown, about 8 minutes total.
- Add simple tomato sauce and bring to a boil. Lower heat and allow meatballs to simmer for 5 minutes.
- Turn off heat and keep warm on stove. Be careful not to overhandle the meatballs since they are soft and fragile.
- In a large pot, bring to a boil 6 quarts of salted water. Add pasta and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain pasta in a colander. Do not rinse pasta with water since you want to retain the pasta natural starches so that the sauce will cling to the penne.
- Remove meatballs from sauce and place in serving bowl. Pour some tomato sauce over meatballs, but leave about 1 cup of sauce in skillet.
- Place the cooked penne into the skillet with the remaining sauce and toss well.
- Pour sauced pasta into a large serving bowl. Serve alongside the meatballs.
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