Meatballs, anyone? I decided to use the leftover marinara sauce from the chicken parmesan I made last Sunday to make meatball subs for #SundaySupper this week. I’m known for my meatballs. It took me a couple of years to get the recipe just right. They have a lovely depth of flavor, and they are super moist and tender. Everything a meatball should be. They really are the perfect meatball.

My dad claims that his meatballs are better than my meatballs (um, this is so not true). This argument has been going on for years. So, I decided that we need to do something to end the ongoing argument. We’re going to have a meatball throw down- Bobby Flay style. I’m going to gather up some taste testers, and we’re going to have a full on meatball battle. We’ll see who has the best balls in Baltimore. That’ll be me. This girl right here. If you’re reading this, dad, it’s on like Donkey Kong! Sorry, but you’re going down.  I’ll keep you posted on who wins this epic battle of the balls.

Okay, I’m not going to lie, photographing the meatball sub was a challenge. They’re just not aesthetically pretty. They taste damn good, but they’re hard to photograph. You have to be quick because the cheese starts to melt, and the sub begins to open and spread apart. Like I said, quite challenging.

You know what else is challenging? Getting your mouth wrapped around the sub to take a bite. It took some squeezing and stuffing, but I managed to fit it in. I had to expand my jaws a bit.

Have plenty of napkins on hand when eating this sub because it can get pretty messy. You know it’s a good sub when it’s a messy sub. Oh, there will be a marinara mustache. Enjoy your #SundaySupper with your loved ones.

Check out what my foodie friends are cooking up for #SundaySupper:

Lane from Supper for a Steal is making her Chicken Tortellini Soup Recipe

Sasha from Rambling Notebook  is making her Crock Pot Curried Carrot Ginger Soup

Amrita from Beetles Kitchen is making her Vegetable Manchurian Recipe

Pam from The Meltaways is making her Chicken Enchilada Pasta

Carla from Chocolate Moosey is making her Sweet Chili Wings Recipe

Liz from That Skinny Chick Can Bake is making her Creme Brûlée French Toast (Yum, breakfast for dinner)

Lyn from Lovely Pantry is making her Butternut Squash and Aspragus Risotto

Karen from Notes from the Cookie Jar is making her Chickpea Masala Sandwiches

Anuradha from Baker Street is making her Blueberry Lime Bread

Recipe:

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef (I used 85/15)

1/2 lb. ground pork

1 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

3 tbs. fresh parsley, chopped

1/2 cup green pepper, chunked

1/2 cup onion, chunked

2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 egg

1/2 tsp. italian seasoning

1/2 tsp. season salt

2 tsp. worcestershire sauce

1 1/2 tsp. dijon mustard

1/4 cup bread crumbs

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1 recipe marinara sauce

2 cups shredded provolone or mozzarella cheese

6 sub rolls

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Place a cooling grate on top of the aluminum foil.

In the bowl of a food processor, add onions, green peppers, and garlic. Pulse until the mixture becomes a fine mince. If the mixture becomes watery, drain some of the juice before adding it to the meat mixture.

In a large bowl, add the ground beef, ground pork, salt, pepper, season salt, italian seasoning, parsley, egg, worcestershire sauce, dijon, veggie mixture, bread crumbs, and parmesan cheese. Mix to combine.

Roll the meat mixture into 1 1/2-inch balls and place them on the cooling grate. Bake for 25 minutes to brown. When your meatballs are finished baking, add the meatballs to the pot with the marinara sauce. Cover and cook on low heat for 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Slice the sub rolls and add 4-5 meatballs to each roll. Top with desired amount of cheese (um, tons) and bake for about 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Helpful kitchen tidbit:  To make it even easier, you can add the marinara sauce and browned meatballs to a crockpot and cook on low for 6-8 hours.