The Best Meatballs

From Kraft Foods

Ok, these really are the best meat balls. I have searched high and low for a great meat ball recipe and alas, I have found it! It is aptly named, no?

2 lb. ground beef

1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Chicken

1-1/4 cups water

2 eggs

HEAT oven to 400ºF.

LINE 2 (15x10x1-inch) pans with foil; spray with cooking spray. Mix ingredients until blended; shape into 32 (1-1/2-inch) balls, using 1/4 cup for each.

PLACE 16 meatballs in each prepared pan. Bake 16 to 18 min. or until done (160ºF).

COMBINE half the meatballs with Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce or Creamy Brown Gravy. (See Tips.) Cool remaining meatballs; freeze for later use. (See Tips.)

KRAFT KITCHEN TIPS:

Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce

Mix 1 jar (14 oz.) spaghetti sauce, 2 oz. cubed PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese and 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh basil in large skillet; cook on medium-low heat 3 min. or until heated through, stirring occasionally. Add 16 hot meatballs; stir to evenly coat. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese before serving. Makes 4 servings, 4 meatballs and 1/3 cup sauce each.

Creamy Brown Gravy

Mix 1 jar (12 oz.) beef gravy, 1/2 cup BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream and 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley in large skillet; cook on medium-low heat 3 min. or until heated through, stirring occasionally. Add 16 hot meatballs; stir to evenly coat. Makes 4 servings, 4 meatballs and 1/3 cup sauce each.

How to Freeze Meatballs

Loosely pack cooled meatballs in freezer-weight resealable plastic bags. Lay bags flat in freezer so meatballs freeze individually. Store up to 3 months. Thaw in refrigerator several hours or overnight before using as desired.

My notes: I made the tomato basil sauce and it was positively scrumptrulescent.

Also, I don't have a lot of baking sheets. In fact, I only have a pizza pan. So I used my pizza pan and a pyrex dish. The meatballs from the pyrex dish were good but they lacked the brown crispy bits the ones from the pizza pan had. I thought it was because I hadn't lined it with foil. My mom thought it was because the sides were taller. Meh. Either way, i will use baking sheets in the future.