Pasta and Meatballs

To make meatball mixer: In a bowl, mix bread and milk and allow to sit for 10 minutes, until bread is completely moist.

Add onion, Parmigiano-Reggiano, garlic, parsley, eggs, oregano, fennel, salt, and pepper to bread/milk mixture. Mix with a fork until well incorporated.

Add ground beef and pork. Using clean hands, gently mix meatball mixture, teasing apart ground meat with your fingers, just until ground beef and pork are thoroughly mixed in and no pockets of unincorporated meat remain; avoid mixing any more than is necessary for even distribution. Reserve about a cup of the mixture.

Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll remaining meatball mixture into meatballs of your preferred size and place them on the sheet.

In a large enameled Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium heat until shimmering. Working in 2 batches, add meatballs and cook, turning occasionally with a thin metal spatula, until browned on several sides, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer browned meatballs back to parchment-lined baking sheet and repeat with remaining meatballs.

Add reserved meatball mixture to Dutch oven and cook, stirring and breaking up large chunks with a wooden spoon, until cooked through and beginning to brown, about 5 minutes.

Add tomato sauce, stirring and scraping up any browned bits. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Add seared meatballs back to Dutch oven, return sauce to a simmer, then lower heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook until meatballs are fully cooked through, about 10-20 minutes, depending on the size of your meatballs.

In a pot of salted, boiling water, cook spaghetti, stirring frequently to prevent sticking, until just shy of al dente, about 2 minutes less than package recommends.

Using tongs, transfer spaghetti directly into simmering sauce along with 1/4 cup (60ml) pasta cooking water, and stir to combine. Cook, stirring constantly, until pasta is al dente and sauce has thickened so it coats noodles and isn't watery, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat.

Add Parmigiano-Reggiano, stirring well to emulsify into sauce. If tomato sauce is too thick, adjust consistency as needed with additional pasta water.

(Optionally) serve the pasta and meatballs in heat proof bowls, top with mozzarella or provolone cheese and put it under the broiler until cheese has melted and is starting to brown.