Even as I’ve gotten older, even as my palate has expanded over the years, even with all the food I’ve tried all over the world, and even with all the professional cooking I do - I swear to god there is NOTHING better than my mom’s meatballs. So much so, that even as a kid, I proclaimed that I would want them at my Last Meal. And so, they are aptly named in my family as : “Tessa’s Last Meal Meatballs.”
A few days ago, I took an impromptu trip to my family’s beach log cabin in North Carolina. Truly some of my happiest childhood memories were spent here. But, I hadn’t been in 5 years. What was once a 6 hour drive from DC became a 12 hour drive once I moved to NYC and … I just didn’t want to make the long trip.
When I unexpectedly had the chance to go there last week, I called my dad and he told me that he just so happened to be planning to go down there himself. So we decided to link up at the ole’ log cabin.
Once I stepped in the house, it was the smell that brought me right back to all those years spent here. It’s like this woody, earthy, warm smell. I can’t explain it…. I think we all have places where the smell transports us back in time. I felt a deep sense of calm and groundedness come over my body. A welcome change from several weeks of a working sprint where I was either slumped over my computer or standing over hot ovens (sometimes both!)
Really nothing had changed in this home since the last time I was here. And thank GOD. The rustic fireplace, overstuffed couches, wood beams across the ceiling, the family pictures of us on the wall running around in our bathing suits, the big wood table where we ate all our meals and did puzzles. Even the kitchen had the same red cabinets and low formica countertops.
So of course, I started to feel a bit nostalgic.
I was here, in this incredibly warm and safe place. Just me and my dad. No 40-person dinners to cook for, no emails to answer, and no errands to run. I had the luxury of time. I felt an urge to make a dish I hadn’t made in too long.
My mom’s Spaghetti and Meatballs.
Now, I bet a lot of families have a Spaghetti and Meatballs recipe that they love and claim is the best. And I’m sure (as someone who lived with an Italian Nonna) that the authentic Italian recipes are technically the best.
Butttttttt y’all haven’t had MY mom’s meatballs. Why are they the best? Sure, they are technically delicious, have that perfect soft inside and crispy outside, and are slowly simmered for hours in tomatoes to develop flavor. But really, I think why they are the best is because they are so incredibly weaved with years and years of love and happy memories.
So when I say they are the best, I say they are the best to ME. And I hope you all have dishes in your life that makes you feel the same way. Where you probably wouldn’t see it on the recipe of a fancy menu, nor would your friends agree it’s the best, but it doesn’t really matter, because to you, it’s just THE BEST.
So that’s this meal for me.
On my mom’s recipe card, she writes:
We have a tradition with the kids that whenever they would go away for a period of time; be it sleep-away camp, a visit to Grandma and Grandpa’s, or returning to college after a visit home, I would make for them their “Last Meal.” Tessa always chose Spaghetti & Meatballs.
I’ve always loved these, and to this day these would be at my Last Meal (after the seafood tower and before the brownie sundae, of course). So much so, that as an adult, I’ve made this recipe myself countless times, yet they never taste as good as my mom’s.
So, a few days ago, at the cabin, when I told my dad I wanted to make them, his face lit up. He said “really!?!?!” He knows the magic of these too.
The thing about these balls, is that while they are relatively simple ingredients, it takes a lot of time. And an excess of time is not something I’ve had lately. I was so looking forward to lazily cooking and hanging by the stovetop all afternoon (not sure what your sunday fantasties are but that is def one of mine).
My thinking is that if you’re already in there doing all this work, you might as well make a shit ton of it. So even though it was just two of us, this recipe makes about 22 meatballs. But meatballs are the gift that keeps giving! We were set for leftovers and could even freeze the rest of them. Even before writing this I already prepared meatball subs for lunch and they were heavenly.
Making these meatballs just felt right.
Below is the recipe almost exactly how my mother wrote it to me years ago.
My tips? Pick a day to be slow so you can enjoy the process. Invite some people over who you love. Get nostalgic. Get seconds. Eat leftovers.
Tessa's Last Meal Meatballs
By Momma T
A note from my mom: Remember when cooking you can and should stray from the recipe: add, swap or delete what you would not like. For example, if you do not like pork then sub it with ground beef or if you do not like chunky sauce then use all crushed tomatoes. I also put the gram weight next to the standard measurements where it could matter. The gram weight is the most accurate especially when a recipe calls for 1 cup of bread crumbs, well 1 cup depends on how large or small you make your crumbs. A scale that does pounds, ounces and grams is always good to have.
MEATBALLS:
1 c. (225 g.) fine chopped onions (1 medium onion) 2 oz. (1/4 cup or 56 g.) butter (can use olive oil)
2 teaspoons (10 g.) chopped garlic
3 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg or cinnamon (opt)
1/2 lb. (225 g.) ground pork
1/2 lb. (225 g.) ground veal
1/4 lb. (112 g.) lamb
1 lb. (450 g.) 80/20 ground beef *most stores sell a mix of pork, veal, and beef. You could get that and replace remaining weight with ground beef.
2 eggs – beat
1/4 cup milk - I personally sub for Ricotta :)
1/4 cup (30 g.) grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup breadcrumbs or panko (which makes it GF)
Sauté onions in butter, at end add garlic, sauté for 2 min. Add spices, cook for 1 minute. Let cool.
In a large bowl add remaining ingredients. Spread onion/spice mix over meat.
Mix by folding over the mixture until well incorporated.
Make balls – I make a 2” diameter but this is a preference thing
In a non-stick skillet add olive oil and brown the meatballs making sure to get all sides brown Transfer to a sheet pan. Yield 22 – 2” balls.
SAUCE
Mom: “You could bail at this point and go buy a couple jars of Rao’s Spaghetti Sauce or.....”
1 cup (225 g.) small diced onions
1 Tablespoon (15 g.) chopped garlic
1/2 cup red wine, something with body
For the tomatoes I like Cento but you can choose another Italian brand because the peeled and diced tomatoes are in a thick sauce. American brands like Heinz the peeled and diced tomatoes are in water. If this is all you can get then add more tomato paste.
1 – 28oz can Peeled Italian Tomatoes
1 – 28 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 - 16 oz. can crushed tomatoes
1 – 6 oz. can tomato paste – may need more for later so buy a 12 oz can just in case 3 cups water
3 cups beef broth
1 Tablespoon chopped parsley
1 Tablespoon + 2 teaspoons kosher salt 1 teaspoon black pepper
Sauté onions in olive oil until translucent. Add garlic and sauté for 2 more minutes Add red wine and cook down until none is left in pan.
Add remaining ingredients
Let simmer on stove for 1 hour
Add meatballs and continue cooking on a low flame for 3-4 hours. The longer the better! Gently stir every now and then but be careful not to break meatballs
If you want it thicker add more paste
Adjust seasoning
Serve over your favorite pasta – I like bucatini Grate top with Parmesan cheese
“Invite your friends over and enjoy! xoxo”
Besos,
Tessa
As I read this it filled me with so much emotion. You were able to put into words the beauty of the cabin; its warms, the endless hugs it gives, and the overwhelming sense of peace it provides. For 28 years and counting, it continues to be an escape from our hectic lives, to reflect on what is important. It stands strong for the next generation of this family to enjoy and collect a new set of memories!
Thank you for sharing "Tessa's Last Meal" with your readers, I feel honored. mom ❣️