Nana’s Sunday Sauce

Growing up, my nana would make this during holidays — and really any time we got together as a family. As she got older, my mom took over the duties. This Christmas, my brother made a batch and I decided that I need this in my life regularly. So I asked my mom for the recipe, which you can find below.

I doubled this when I made it yesterday. I used 3 lbs of ground beef and 3 lbs of hot sausage — no mild this time. I also used 3/4 tbsp of garlic salt instead of 1/2 tsp salt plus 1/2 tsp garlic salt. Next time, I’ll probably use a little less Parmesan — 3/4-ish cup instead of the full 1 cup — but that’s just personal preference.

Enjoy!

Meatballs

• 1 1/2 lbs ground beef
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• Sprinkle of parsley flakes
• Scant cup (~3/4 cup) bread crumbs
• 1/2 tsp garlic salt

Mix everything together and roll into balls. Bake at 350ºF for 20 minutes, or until browned.

Sausage

• 3/4 lb hot Italian sausage links
• 3/4 lb mild or sweet Italian sausage links

Cut into 2-3 inch pieces and cook in a frying pan on the stove until they reach 160ºF. If I’m doing both hot and mild, I cut one shorter than the other so we can tell them apart.

Sauce

• 1 can tomato puree
• 1 small can tomato paste
• 1 can water
• Pinch of red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp oregano

Cook until thick, then add the meatballs and sausage. Cover and simmer for 1 1/2-2 hours.