One Pot Spaghetti and Meatballs Florentine

That's right. One pot. Everything cooks together. The sauce, the meatballs and the pasta. And it's really good. I'm not sure what's going on at your house, but it's a little hectic over here. And that's with us curtailing much of the usual Christmas craziness. I've had this recipe tagged for months, and after several failed attempts at slow cooker dinners (if you want to see a grown man shudder ask Sam about my crockpot bbq pulled chicken) I was happy to hit on something relatively quick and simple. Now, before we get too excited, there is still the part where you're shaping and frying roughly 36 mini meatballs. I don't know about you, but I hate frying meatballs. With a passion. I know, I know. I'm a nice Italian girl from New Jersey. I'm supposed to be born loving this sort of thing- or so Sam loves to remind me. But it's time consuming. And messy. And getting them to "brown on all sides" is tedious work for a Tuesday night. But I thought I'd be a sport since everything else about this recipe is pretty streamlined. Dinner was on the table within 35 minutes, and everyone was happy! happy! happy!

One Pot Spaghetti and Meatballs Florentine

*Note- When I do find myself frying meatballs, I always try to use a large pot with high sides like the enameled cast iron one shown in the picture. This cuts down slightly on the oily, splattered mess. Also, and this is just a personal preference, next time I'd use either all ground beef or even ground turkey- though not too lean. We're not big pork people and you can definitely taste the ground pork in the meat mixture.

Ingredients
1 pound meatloaf mix
3 ounces (3 cups) baby spinach, chopped (this means measure, then chop)  
1/3 cup panko bread crumbs  
1 egg, lightly beaten  
5 garlic cloves, minced
Salt and Pepper  
1 tablespoon olive oil  
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes  
2 cups water 
8 oz uncooked spaghetti, broken in half  
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil


Directions  
1. Combine meat, 1 cup of the chopped spinach, panko, egg, half of the garlic. and 1 teaspoon salt in a large bowl. Mix gently until everything is incorporated. Form into small, 1-inch meat balls. You should get about 3 dozen. Heat oil in a large 12-inch skillet or pot over medium-high heat until smoking. Cook the meatballs until well browned all over, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate.  

2. Add remaining garlic to skillet, cook for 30 seconds until fragrant. Stir in tomatoes, water, spaghetti and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium low and stir often until spaghetti begins to soften, about 7 minutes. Add meatballs and continue to simmer, covered, until meatballs and spaghetti are cooked through, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add remaining 2 cups of chopped spinach and chopped basil. Season with salt and pepper.

recipe source: Cook's Country Dec/Jan 2013