…for adding your classy punchline to this childhood photo of my grandma and I. It took me 20 years to notice.

Standing alone in the 3 a.m. darkness of a petite Paris apartment that my friends and I had called home for a week, I awakened from a dream in which I was picnicking on a grassy knoll with an exploding basket of runny cheeses and potato salad a la Francaise—the silky, vinaigrette-dressed potato salad that rivals the mayo-clad counterpart we all know and love. I groggily shuffled over to our tiny fridge to find nothing but a small heap of strawberries quietly rotting from our neglect. (This wasn’t quite the Paris experience I had hoped for.)

As the sun’s rays finally flooded through our windows, Paris came alive: the collective hum of scooters and cars, the faint clack-clack-clacks of women deftly walking in heels on the patchy cobblestone streets. I wound a scarf around my neck and soon I was clack-clacking along with them, on a mission to recreate my dream picnic.

But my Paris rendezvous with potato salad a la Francaise was not to be. The city is full of distractions when you’re on a mission—all kinds of amusements that only the strong-willed can resist: the streetside crepe stands, the artsy store window displays neighboring populated cafes on almost every corner. By the time I had reached La Grande Epicerie, the mothership of gourmet shops in Paris, to purchase my ingredients, I already had inhaled a ham and cheese crepe, a slice of pear tart (washed down with un chocolat viennois, nonetheless), and two chocolate croissants (How do the French stay so thin?). Clearly, my willpower needs a little more work.

Read the rest of this entry »

My father, an Italian, was a spaghetti expert. “Meatballs,” he said, “need to be as big as your fist.” On spaghetti nights, he’d watch with his arms crossed as I dug into one of his homemade meatballs, which, back then, were almost the size of my head. “A meatball has to sit on the spaghetti like an egg in a nest,” he continued. No matter that it looked like a bowling ball squashing the last breath out of every noodle on my plate. The meatball was always the main attraction. Spaghetti was secondary.

In my childhood, a meatball’s most familiar place was on top of a mound of sauced-up noodles. As I got older, these meaty nuggets made appearances at cocktail parties swathed in barbecue sauce, between tiny hamburger buns as sliders, even as massive floaters in soup (albondigas, anyone?). The meatball’s versatility knew no bounds, gracing the plate in large and mini versions, spicy or sweet, sometimes made with a combination of meats and spices. Even with all these possibilities, a meatball in its simplest form is just meat, some seasoning and something to bind it all together. The spices, the exotic-sounding ingredients – those all stem from the same, basic recipe. Once you have that, you’re free to experiment to your heart’s content.

Tuck this basic meatball recipe into your back pocket so it’ll be at the ready when you need some easy meals and appetizers. Though it calls only for ground beef, don’t be shy about trying other meats, like pork and chicken. For a little heat, sub out some of the ground beef with spicy sausage. You can also experiment with herbs and spices while you’re at it. I’ve included some suggestions for serving at the bottom of the recipe.
BASIC MEATBALLS
Yield: 22 to 24 meatballs

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup onion, minced
• 1/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1/3 cup milk
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 egg
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Procedure:
1. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix thoroughly.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking pan or cookie sheet with parchment paper.
3. Shape mixture into the size of golf balls and place on prepared pan about 2 inches apart. Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until cooked through and slightly browned. Remove from oven and serve alone, or in the following variations.
Cocktail-style: Grab a bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce and empty its contents into a pot. Simmer meatballs in barbecue sauce until hot. Pour all into a serving dish, and serve with cocktail forks or toothpicks.
Hawaiian sliders: You’ll need a package of Hawaiian rolls, pineapple rings and apricot jam. Split Hawaiian rolls in half and toast on a baking sheet in the oven for a few minutes. Empty jar of apricot jam into a pot or microwave-safe bowl, and heat until jam is pourable. Brush each meatball with apricot jam and place on Hawaiian roll. Top with pineapple and serve. You can also grill the pineapple rings.
Meatball sandwiches: You’ll need 4 French rolls, 8 slices of provolone cheese and 2 cups of marinara sauce. Simmer about 16 of the meatballs in marinara until hot. Split French rolls in half lengthwise and place on a baking sheet. Line each half with slices of provolone cheese, and toast in the oven until cheese is melted. Spoon in 4 meatballs per French roll and serve.
Spaghetti and meatballs: Simmer meatballs in marinara sauce until hot. Spoon over spaghetti noodles and toss.
Soup: Whenever a recipe calls for meatballs (like Italian wedding soup, or albondigas), drop these in.
To store: Cooked meatballs can be kept in an airtight bag or container for up to two months. This is convenient if you plan to make spaghetti or soup in the coming weeks. Just take a few out of the freezer and pop into the sauce or broth to heat through.