Years ago, on the First Friday before Mother’s Day, our family was walking downtown, enjoying everything our fair city has to offer, when we were stopped by a photographer for the Sun Gazette. He was doing a “Man On The Street” photo spread asking children what they love about their mothers. Sophia was probably in second grade, and said something sweet and eloquent, along the lines of, “I love my mother because she takes care of me and she’s always there for me when I need her.”
Ben wasn’t very verbal at the time, but when the photographer asked him what he loves about his mother, he blurted out, “Meatballs!” followed by some giggling.
The newspaper clipping is tucked away in some box in the attic now, but I remember the picture of the three of us sitting on the curb, beaming at the camera, with a caption proclaiming: “Ben Sprunger loves his mother’s meatballs.”
Indeed. They aren’t even really “my” meatballs, since I almost always buy a pack of frozen meatballs at Wegmans, to be jazzed up in whatever manner suits our fancy. Our best recipe is for “Party Meatballs,” which is probably what Ben had in mind when he was interviewed. This week, for Ben’s Day Wednesday, we made Crockpot Meatballs, and served them with bucatini (thick, hollow spaghetti), garlic bread, and Caesar salad.
Before school, Ben and I put all necessary ingredients for the meatballs into the crockpot. We opened some cans, we dumped in some frozen meatballs, we measured some dried herbs, and we proclaimed that onions and bell peppers were for people who don’t board the bus at 6:49.
Crockpot Meatballs
28 oz. tomato sauce
28 oz. crushed tomatoes
14.5 oz. fire roasted tomatoes
3 oz. tomato paste
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried parsley
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 onion, chopped (or 1 teaspoon dried, chopped onion if you are in a time jam)
1 chopped bell pepper (or not, if you’re in a bind)
1 1/2 pounds frozen meatballs
Salt to taste
Serve with bucatini (cooked according to package directions), and garlic bread. Top pasta with grated parmesan and basil.
Garlic Bread
1 loaf of Italian bread
Butter
Garlic Powder
Slice bread, and spread butter on each piece. Top each piece with garlic powder, and place pieces together again in a reconstructed loaf. Wrap loaf in foil and place in 300º oven for 10-15 minutes (while pasta cooks).
Caesar Salad
We make it, like, every week. We don’t need a recipe, and neither do you. (Consult our Recipe Index: https://bensdaywednesday.com/recipe-index/ if I’m wrong.)
I suppose we could have made meatballs from scratch, but why? If store-bought frozen meatballs inspire love and adoration in the Man on the Street, maybe that’s enough. Maybe it isn’t even about the meatballs. Maybe it’s about knowing someone always has your back. Someone will always feed you. Someone will always love you.
Or, maybe it’s about the meatballs.
We hope all meatball mammas reading this had as wonderful a Mother’s Day as I had!