Red Wine Meatall Spaghetti

Many moons ago, Hubby, Kiddo and I called Las Vegas Home. It seems a lifetime ago, and in many ways, that’s true. As you can imagine, there are an insane number of Italian Restaurants in Las Vegas, especially away from the bright lights of Las Vegas Boulevard.

Nearly every Cassino both on and off the strip has at least one Italian Restaurant. The same can be said about nearly every strip mall. The more tucked away, the better. And nearly every Italian restaurant was not part of the tourist destinations are dark on Mondays. That always struck me as odd. Why Mondays? Considering how close most Italians (especially gangster types) are to the Church, you would think Sundays would be a day of rest. Turns out, the reason restaurants that aren’t open seven days a week tend to pick Mondays as their dark days is because most diners don’t eat out on Mondays. It’s just not a very popular or profitable day to be open. And since so many Italian Restaurants tend to be family owned and operated, this gives the family a day to relax and be together. That makes sense.

So does cooking Italian dishes at home when the restaurants are dark. This dish was originally suppose to be a Friday share – since the original recipe was meatless. But since I decided to share it on a Monday instead, why not throw in a few meatballs into that beautiful mushroom sauce? Don’t be afraid of pouring an entire cup of wine into the sauce either, it brings on a whole new complexity to the flavors. Yeah, this recipe is going to be one of my favorites for years to come. Enjoy a beautiful Italian supper.

Red Wine Meatball Spaghetti
1 Shallot
6 Garlic Cloves
10 oz Cremini (Brown) Mushrooms
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
1 cup Red Wine
1 (14 oz) can Diced Italian Tomatoes
1 (8 oz) can Tomato Sauce
2-1/2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning or to taste
Pinch Red Pepper Flakes
25 frozen Italian Meatballs
Salt to taste
Black Pepper to taste
14 oz Spaghetti Pasta
Parmesan Cheese, garnish

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Maintain a rolling boil until ready to cook the pasta.

Peel and chop the shallot. Peel and mince garlic. Clean, trim and slice the mushrooms. Set aside.

Heat oil in a large sauce pan over medium-high heat. Add shallots, cook until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, cook until aromatic, about a minute. Add mushrooms, cook until liquid has been released, about 8 minutes. Deglaze the pan with wine, scraping up the bottom.

Add diced tomatoes and tomato sauce. Season with Italian Seasoning and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Let simmer for about 10 minutes.

Add meatballs to the sauce. Let simmer until heated through and sauce has thickened, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

While the sauce simmers, cook pasta according to directions, al denta, about 11 minutes. Reserve 1/2-cup of the pasta cooking water for the sauce. Drain pasta, keep warm.

When ready, place pasta in a large serving bowl. Thin sauce as needed with reserved pasta water. Pour sauce with meatballs over the pasta. Pull pasta through the sauce to coat. Serve with Parmesan Cheese for a garnish tableside.

Excellent with warm Italian Bread and a glass of red wine.

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Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; He has come to His people