Spaghetti and a Meatball

On top of spaghetti,
All covered with cheese,
I lost my poor meatball,
When somebody sneezed.

It rolled off the table,
And on to the floor,
And then my poor meatball,
Rolled out of the door.

It rolled in the garden,
And under a bush,
And then my poor meatball,
Was nothing but mush.

The mush was as tasty
As tasty could be,
And then the next summer,
It grew into a tree.

The tree was all covered,
All covered with moss,
And on it grew meatballs,
And tomato sauce.

So if you eat spaghetti,
All covered with cheese,
Hold on to your meatball,
Whenever you sneeze.

In the small town of Provo, Utah there resides my favorite university, Brigham Young University. There also resides a very popular pizza joint known as “Brick Oven”. A lifetime ago when I was a student at BYU this pizza eatery was known as “Heaps Brick Oven” and we referred to it simply as “Heaps”.

Back in the day…which would be the 70’s…the interior of Heaps reflected the style of the times. It was rustic with lots of rough hewn wood on the walls, ceiling, and between the booths. The lighting was minimal which together with the wood elements set a certain alpine ski lodge type of mood. Ever present were the delicious scents of garlic and oregano and more garlic and more oregano. You know the smells I’m talking about. To drink, there was always apple beer.

If you’re not familiar with apple beer, I’m sorry. It is wonderful. Despite the word ‘beer’, this is a nonalcoholic beverage. It is not just simply carbonated apple juice or cider…there is something more, almost a kind a of tang, plus just the right amount of sweet, plus the carbonation. I have to admit, the apple beer tasted better with the ambiance of that 70’s interior than it does with the updated interior. It’s interesting the way surroundings can affect the perception of the way food tastes.

Today Heaps, or rather Brick Oven, has a light, bright interior. The place is always crazy busy, with a near constant line of people waiting to be seated. The menu has changed since long ago and now includes pasta, soup, and salad bars.

The pasta bar has a number of selections available for pasta shapes and sauces. Each individual serving of pasta gets a boiling water warm-up while you wait and watch. The first time that I went through the relatively new pasta bar, I was asked if I wanted a meatball with my pasta. ‘A’, as in one, meatball. I thought that ‘a meatball’ sounded kind of stingy, but I said yes anyway.

I watched as the pasta girl hefted a baseball sized “meatball” onto my plate of pasta. I have to admit that I gawked for a moment in absolute wonder. “A meatball“ had suddenly taken on a whole new meaning. I felt like a spectacle walking back to my table with a half  side of beef shaped like a meatball sitting on top of some pasta.

Since that day, seeing the real meaning of a meatball, I have come to appreciate that old favorite Boy Scout song, “On Top of Spaghetti”. In 5th grade my friends and I used to sing that song every time the lunch ladies served spaghetti. We’d laugh at our silly selves and think we were so funny. The song is even funnier to me now because I know exactly what kind of meatball could roll off of a table and out the door into the garden and grow a meatball tree.

The following meatball recipe uses both ground beef and Italian sausage. I used a mild Italian sausage, which worked well for my family. Of course, spicy works well, too, depending on personal preference.

Cook’s Note: I made these meatballs approximately 2- to 2 1/2-inches in diameter. Additionally, I baked them on a large, foil-lined shallow baking pan in the oven rather than fry them in a pan. (Easy clean-up!)

Print Recipe

Spaghetti and a Meatball

The meatballs in this recipe are LARGE! It is a fun twist on traditional spaghetti and meatballs.

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Cook Time40 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr

Servings: 14 2- to 2 1/2-inch meatballs

Author: Terri @ that's some good cookin'

Ingredients

For the meatballs

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 pound Italian sausage
• 1 medium onion, very finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon granulated onion
• 1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup plain dried bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup milk

For the spaghetti

• 1 pound package spaghetti, cooked according to package directions
• 1 (32 ounces) jar favorite pasta sauce or try Simple Roasted Tomato and Garlic Sauce (link in Notes section)
• grated Parmesan cheese, as desired for topping

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375-degrees F.
• Add all of the meatball ingredients to a large bowl. Mix together well by hand.
• Shape into 2-inch to 2 1/2-inch balls. You should get about 14 meatballs. Place on foil lined shallow baking pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until meatballs are done. The juices will run clear when the meatballs are done.
• Serve on top of prepared spaghetti noodles with your favorite bottled or homemade sauce.

Notes

Instead of using a readymade pasta sauce, you may enjoy this Simple Roasted Tomato and Garlic Sauce

Recipe by Terri @ that's some good cookin'

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