Delicious, yet easy spaghetti and meatball dinner. This inexpensive dinner recipe is perfect for busy weeknights, and you can even double the recipe and freeze half of the meatballs for later.
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A classic spaghetti and meatball dinner with a twist, pesto meatballs. In my opinion pesto makes everything better, and adds so much flavor. Meatballs that I have made in the past don't always come out very flavorful. I usually just guess when seasoning them, and then I end up relying on the sauce to be the star of the show. These meatballs on the other hand are anything but bland. They are packed full of pesto and parmesan. I can guarantee they will be a crowd pleaser.
This recipe is on regular rotation in my house of weeknight dinners for multiple reasons. It is a good staple so that you don't have to stress about what to make, it's inexpensive, and is quick, and easy. You can also have peace of mind knowing it's something the whole family will love, even picky eaters; so make sure you add this recipe to your list of dinners to make this week.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
Garlic Bread - It's a classic for a reason, and perfect for soaking up any leftover sauce.
Side Salad - This would be great with a classic Italian chopped salad, but if you want to try something new, pair this recipe with my Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad Skewers.
Roasted Vegetables - Green beans, broccoli, zucchini, and eggplant are a few of my favorites. You could also cook the vegetables and add them to the sauce.
What to do with Leftovers
This recipe is great for leftovers and has so many possibilities for repurposing the meatballs. You could simply eat the leftover spaghetti for lunch the next day, or make a larger batch of meatballs for the rest of the week. I love doing this because it makes prep just that much easier when the last thing you want to do is cook dinner. Try using some leftover garlic bread to make meatball subs, throw them in a pot of soup, or chop them up and put them on homemade pizza!
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Pesto Meatballs and Spaghetti
Ingredients
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- ½ c italian breadcrumbs
- ¼ c basil pesto
- ¼ c grated parmesan cheese
- ¼ tsp pepper
- ¼ tsp salt
- 24 oz spaghetti sauce
- fresh basil leaves to garnish
- 1 lb spaghetti noodles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, breadcrumbs, basil pesto, parmesan cheese, pepper, and salt. Mix well.
- Form mixture into 1 inch balls, and place on baking sheet.
- Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven.
- Set cooked meatballs in a large skillet, and cover with pasta sauce.
- Fill a large pot halfway with water and boil over high heat. Add noodles, and cook until al dente, approximately 10 minutes.
- Strain water.
- Serve noodles with meatballs and sauce over it, or mix it all together in a large bowl.
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