Bucatini All'Amatriciana with Spicy Fontina Meatballs

This recipe is full of secrets.  Spicy little secrets.  Cheesy little secrets.  Delicious little secrets.  Fontina cheese oozes out of the meatballs to reveal a hidden center.  It doesn't end there.  The Amatriciana sauce is full of it's own secrets:  spicy toasted red pepper flakes, meaty chunks of pancetta, and handfuls of Romano cheese.  The end result is a very cheesy, slightly spicy, robust version of spaghetti and meatballs that will have everyone in your family singing your praises and asking for seconds.

In her cookbook, Giada notes that her Aunt Raffy likes to add a bit of wine to the simmering tomato sauce.  I tend to agree with Raffy on this one and added about 1 cup of white wine to my sauce as it was simmering.  Giada's recipe also calls for smoked mozzarella for stuffing the meatballs, but I'm not real fond of smoky cheese so I opted for creamy Fontina.

Yummy cheese oozing out of the baked meatballs

Bucatini All'Amatriciana with Spicy Fontina Meatballs

Adapted from Giada at Home

Serves 4-6

Sauce

2 Tablespoons olive oil

6 ounces pancetta, diced 

1 yellow onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

1 (14 oz) can crushed tomatoes

1/2 teaspoon salt, or more to taste

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or more to taste

1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
Optional: About 1 cup wine (I used white)

Meatballs

1 small onion, grated

3/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

2/3 cup plus 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1/3 cup Italian-style seasoned dried bread crumbs

1 large egg

2 tablespoons ketchup

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon salt, or more to taste

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

8 ounces ground beef

8 ounces ground veal

2 ounces fontina cheese, cubed into 16 -1/2"- cubes

1 pound percatelli or other long pasta

For the sauce: In a large, heavy skillet, heat the oil over medium-heat.  Add the pancetta and cook, stirring constantly, until golden brown, 5-7 minutes.  Using a slotted spoon, remove the pancetta and set aside.

Add the onion to the skillet and cook for 5 minutes.  Stir in the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Add the tomatoes, salt, black pepper, and the cooked pancetta.  Simmer, uncovered, over medium-low heat until the sauce thickens, about 15 minutes.  Stir in the Pecorino Romano cheese and season with salt and pepper, if needed.

For the meatballs: Position an oven rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 400F.  Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine the onion, 1/2 cup of the parsley, 2/3 cup of the Parmesan cheese, the bread crumbs, egg, ketchup, garlic, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.  Add the beef and veal.  Using your hands, combine the ingredients gently but thoroughly.  Shape the meat mixture into 16 1-1/2-inch-diameter meatballs and place on the prepared baking sheet.  Make a depression in the center of each meatball and place a cube of fontina inside.  Re-form the meatball so that the fontina is completely covered with the meat mixture.

Bake the meatballs for 15 minutes, or until cooked through.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.  Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 11 minutes (depending on the type of pasta used). 

Drain the pasta and place in a large serving bowl.  Add the sauce.  Toss gently and season with salt and pepper, if needed.  Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cu parsley and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.  Put the meatballs in a separate bowl and serve alongside the pasta.

 

Notes/Results:  This recipe is the ultimate in cheesy as there is quite a bit of cheese in both the sauce and the meatballs. We all loved biting into the meatballs and tasting that cheesy center.  A good thing for sure! The sauce is slightly spicy which is a welcome break from the norm.  Of course, the meaty chunks of pancetta in the sauce were as tasty as can be.  This is a keeper recipe that I would be happy to make again. 

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