Garlic Italian Meatballs...for a Crowd!

Name: Garlic Italian Meatballs...for a Crowd!
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 200 meatballs, 35 serving(s)
Ingredients: 3 lbs lean ground beef; 3 lbs ground turkey; 2 cups finely grated parmesan cheese or 2 cups romano cheese; 3 heads garlic, peeled and minced; 1 1/2 cups fresh breadcrumbs; 1 1/2 cups milk; 6 eggs; 1/2-3/4 cup chopped flat-leaf Italian parsley; 1 1/2 tablespoons salt; 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Submitted by A Messy Cook

"These meatballs are simple, versatile, and packed with savory, garlicky flavor! YUM!! Use them for spaghetti, meatball sandwiches, Italian wedding soup, baked ziti...I think this recipe will serve 35 people. :-) It would also freeze well for those of you who do OAMC. The lady who gave me this recipe used to be a caterer, and she told me that one of her clients said these were better than his Italian wife's own meatballs! I guess that's saying something. Anyway, I really like these, and if you love garlic, so will you! Cooking time is for one batch of meatballs, but of course it will take longer to make all of them. Prep time doesn't include peeling and mincing the three heads of garlic, which is admittedly a somewhat lengthy process. Oh well, it's certainly worth it!!"

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photo by A Messy Cook

Ready In:: 30mins
Ingredients:: 10
Yields:: 200 meatballs
Serves:: 35

ingredients

3 lbs lean ground beef
3 lbs ground turkey
2 cups finely grated parmesan cheese or 2 cups romano cheese
3 heads garlic, peeled and minced
1 ¹⁄₂ cups fresh breadcrumbs
1 ¹⁄₂ cups milk
6 eggs
¹⁄₂ - ³⁄₄ cup chopped flat-leaf Italian parsley
1 ¹⁄₂ tablespoons salt
¹⁄₂ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

directions

Combine all ingredients and mix thoroughly.
Shape into meatballs by tablespoons, and bake on sprayed cookie sheet for 10 minutes at 350 degrees.
If a little "puddle" forms on the cookie sheet, don't worry -- it's just oil from the cheese and meat, and aren't you glad that it came out of the meatballs instead of staying in?! You can get rid of this excess fat by removing cooked meatballs to a dish lined with paper towels.
ENJOY!

Questions & Replies

Can you make these meatballs a day ahead and heat them in a crockpot for a spaghetti dinner for a crowd?

Peg J.

Reviews

I am cooking a spaghetti dinner for about a hundred people and this is the recipe I chose for the meatballs. I made my meatballs a little larger but they smell awesome. I will taste one before I complete this review. OMG these are awesome I will be making this recipe whenever I need meatballs.

cpenry
Awesome recipe!! I added some basil and used only 10-12 cloves garlic-super easy, flavorful, and definitely will be a winner for our Christmas party! FYI...I used seasoned bread crumbs and let them soak in the milk/egg mixture to soften-worked beautifully.

Angela at home
Very nice basic meatball recipe. I needed a recipe that made a lot of meatballs for the freezer, was flavor neutral as I wanted to be able to use them in several different types of sauces and were relatively light. Baking these does bring the fat out, but since I used lean ground beef and ground turkey breast there was actually very little fat at all on the pans. I didn't make any changes to the recipe and they turned out with a very nice mild flavor. Thanks you.

erobbins4
What a good idea baking the meatballs instead of frying them.

j.a.c.k.

RECIPE SUBMITTED BY

A Messy Cook

United States

My most important characteristic is this: I am a child of God through the gracious work of Jesus Christ! I love to be with my family and friends. Interests? Writing, reading, cooking, dancing, teaching, splashing in puddles...I am an English teacher, wannabe children's author, and a bit of a health nut...and I can't stand high pitched squeaky noises.

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