Now I have to back track a bit. In Italy, they do serve meatballs (or “polpette”), but they are not served over spaghetti, as we do in North America. They are served as an appetizer or main course, on their own or with tomato sauce.

For this recipe, I took the classic North American approach and served my meatballs over spaghetti. I chose to use  my “cheating” meatballs, which are made from decased sausages and are browned in oil before being cooked in tomato sauce. The sausages speed up your prep time and add great flavour!

I hope you enjoy this olive picking dinner! Looking for more pasta sauces? Check out “pasta” from the “FOOD” menu to find my: Carbonara, Amatriciana, Red Lentil Ragu, Creamy Spiced Pumpkin Penne, Slow Cooker Sunday Sauce, Roasted Tomato Rigatoni, Zucchini Sauce, Asparagus and Mushroom Fettuccine, Dinner for One, Pasta e Ceci, Studen Stroganoff, Sausage Pasta Sauce, Sugo di Melanzana Oliva Pomodoro, Spicy Penne alla Vodka or Super Pasta!

Curious about how olive oil is made? Check out this post.

Prep time: 10 minutes; Cook time: 45 minutes; Serves: 4 – 6 people

What you need:

• 1 lb sausage, decased and rolled into balls (you can prepare smaller or larger meatballs – I’ve done both)
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 jar 700ml tomato passata (or one 796ml can crushed tomatoes)
• 3 stalks fresh basil (or 2 tbsp dried basil)
• 1 stalk fresh oregano (or 1 tbsp dried oregano)
• 1/4 tsp salt 
• 1/8 tsp fresh ground pepper
• 500 ml dried spaghetti, cooked
• freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
• My Go-To Spice Mix

What you do:

• In a large Dutch oven or pot, over medium-high heat, add the olive oil 
• Brown the sausage meatballs on all sides, approximately 10 minutes, remove from pot and set aside

• Add the diced onions and garlic, saute approximately 2 minutes, until soft
• Add 1 tsp of My Go-To Spice Mix (optional) (and dried basil if you are using it), stir for about 20 seconds until the spices are lightly toasted
• Add the meatballs back to the pot
• Add the tomato passata, salt and pepper, bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer and add the fresh basil and oregano (If you want to make this as a “Dinner While You Work” recipe, at this point, put these items in a slow cooker and cook on low for 6-8+ hours in your slow cooker )

• Cook approximately 30 (or more) minutes (now is a good time to start boiling your water and cooking your spaghetti)

• Remove the fresh basil and oregano stalks prior to serving
• Serve over hot spaghetti, top with Parmigiano Reggiano and more of My Go-To Spice Mix (if desired) – remember to remove the basil leaves before serving!
• Buon appetito!

• Happy picking!

• Comfort food!

• A little North American Italian!
• All the work pays off when you see the fresh pressed olive oil!
• A shoutout to Geoffrey and Zak for all their help with this year’s harvest! Grazie mille!
• Until next year, olive trees!

Yield: 4 - 6 servings

Olive Picking Dinner

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

A quick and easy spaghetti and meatballs full of flavour. A fast pull together dinner.

Print

Ingredients

• 1 lb sausage, decased and rolled into balls (your call if you do smaller or larger meatballs - I've done both sizes in the past)
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 jar 700ml tomato passata (or 1 - 796ml can crushed tomatoes)
• 3 stalks fresh basil (or 2 tbsp dried basil)
• 1 stalk fresh oregano (or 1 tbsp dried oregano)
• 1/4 tsp salt 
• 1/8 tsp fresh ground pepper
• 500 ml dried spaghetti, cooked
• freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
• My Go-To Spice Mix

Instructions

1. In a large Dutch oven or pot, over medium-high heat, add the olive oil 
2. Brown you sausage meatballs on all sides, remove from pot and set aside
3. Add the diced onions and garlic, saute until soft
4. Add 1 tsp of My Go-To Spice Mix (optional) (and dried basil if you are using i, stir for about 30 seconds until the spices are slightly toasted
5. Add the meatballs back to the pot
6. Add the red wine and balsamic, stir, cooking approximately 2-3 minutes until reduced and alcohol has burned off (If you want to make this as a "Dinner While You Work" recipe, at this point, put these items in a slow cooker and cook this in your slow cooker )
7. Add the tomato passata, bring to a boil and the fresh basil if you are using) reduce heat to a simmer (for the slow cooker, add to the meatballs in the slow cooker and cook on low for 6-8+ hours)
8. Cook approximately 30 (or more minutes) minutes (now is a good time to start boiling your water and cooking your spaghetti.
9. Remove the basil and oregano stalks prior to serving
10.  Serve over hot spaghetti, top with Parmigiano Reggiano and more of My Go-To Spice Mix (if desired) - remember to remove the basil leaves before serving!
11. Buon appetito!