Sweet and Sour Meatballs + Calphalon Cookware Giveaway
Confession: I’m not on the Spaghetti and Meatball train. I’ve never really liked them…but maybe I haven’t had them in the right context?! I dunno…Who wants to make them for me? Any takers?! Don’t all volunteer at once. Technically I’ll never turn down a bowl of pasta and I love a good ball….that’s what she said…but together I’ve always thought they were a bit odd.
HOWEVER, these sweet and sour meatballs are AMAZEBALLS {pun intended} and so so simple to make. Odds are you have all the ingredients on hand and these make for perfect appetizers or party food. It’s always the meatballs and the little smokies to go first. ALWAYS.
If you wanted to make these in advance, just keep them in your slow cooker for the day of the party and by night they will be all slow cooked and glazed to perfection. Tender, sweet and delish! My husband goes CRAZY over these. Seriously. He ate almost all of them by himself. I would have fought him a little harder if I could eat more than my 3 year old at any one sitting. One day I’ll eat more than a bird…one day.
Anyways, this recipe is one of my favorite EVER and think you all will love them too! Here’s how you make them:
Start my mushing sandwich bread and milk all together til it’s all soggy. Weird start to a meatball, I know BUT it makes it really tender. You’ll see!
Once the bread is all good and squished, add in some more ingredients…pretty typical of any meatball-ground beef, onion, garlic, egg, salt, pepper. Squish that all together with your hands and that’s the base for these little babies.
Now you can scoop your mixture using a cookie scoop {thanks, OXO!} to divide it evenly. I made mine slightly smaller than golf balls.
Once they’re all nicely portioned, roll them into perfect balls…
like so! Set these aside.
Place a high sided skillet on medium heat and add about 2 tablespoons of canola oil.
Throw in your meatballs and cook to brown them as evenly as you can. And, you’re only trying to brown these guys…not cook them all the way through.
While those are cooking, put all the ingredients together for the sauce. Again, simple things you all probably have in your fridge. Whisk that all together and wait until the meatballs are done browning.
Once they are, remove the meatballs from the pan, add the sauce and stir to de-glaze and pick up any brown bits at the bottom of the pan Pop the meatballs back into the sauce, coat evenly and reduce the heat.
Cover and cook these from 30 minutes to 3 hours. Just like with anything else, they taste better the longer you cook them. And the longer you cook them the darker and less ketchup-y the sauce becomes. It’s like magic!! I used the latest and greatest AccuCore pans from Calphalon and they were awesome!
Well, I’ve become buddy-buddy with my good friends at Calphalon and lucky for you they like me! So, they are going to be giving away 3 of their best AccuCore pans {all picked by yours truly} to one lucky winner. {Pans ARV= over $600} Not too shabby if I do say so myself!
Included in this prize pack are:
Calphalon AccuCore 4-qt. Sauce Pan
Calphalon AccuCore 3-qt. Saute Pan
Calphalon AccuCore 12-inch Omelette Pan
Why I love Calphalon Pans:
-Since I’ve been married, all I’ve ever owned were Calphalon pans. I love their non-stick pans because they are all truly nonstick. And these new AccuCore pans conduct heat SO well.
-Food browns faster at a lower temperature in my AccuCore pans. I love it! It means I can get dinner on the table a lot quicker. Music to a pregnant woman’s ears.
-They are all easy to clean. I’m not sure if I use super soap or what, but I’ve never had a problem cleaning any of these pans. I deglaze a lot…that probably has something to do with it.
-Both the nonstick and the new AccuCore pans heat evenly, so no strange hot spots to be concerned about. All my meatballs browned completely evenly! That NEVER happens.
-Overall, high quality cookware that will last you many many years!
LURVE these pans 
Here’s how you can enter to win them:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
And now for the recipe:
Sweet and Sour Meatballs
Yield: 4-6 servings
Ingredients:
for the meatballs--
2 slices sandwich bread, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup milk
1 lb. ground beef
1/4 cup finely diced onion
1 clove garlic, grated
1 egg
salt and pepper, to taste
canola oil, for frying
for the sauce--
1 cup ketchup
2 teaspoons mustard
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons finely diced onion
1 clove garlic, grated
salt & pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
Directions:
In a large bowl, soak pieces of bread in milk until soggy, about 3 minutes. Stir in remaining ingredients for the meatballs and stir together until well blended. Using a cookie scoop, divide mixture into approximately 24 meatballs. Roll each individual meatball to be evenly round. Heat large skillet over medium heat with canola oil {I used about 2 tablespoons}. Place meatballs into hot pan and brown.
While meatballs are cooking, measure all ingredients for the sauce together and whisk to combine. Set aside.
Once meatballs are brown, remove from pan and deglaze with sauce. Stir to remove any dark bits at the bottom of the pan and replace meatballs into skillet and coat in sauce. Cover and cook anywhere between 30 minutes and 3 hours. The longer they cook, the more delicious they become. Serve as is as an appetizer or over pasta or rice for a main dish.
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81 Responses to “Sweet and Sour Meatballs + Calphalon Cookware Giveaway”
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I love party meatballs..so much more than meatballs and spaghetti too! I can’t wait to try this one out on an upcoming football game!
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Delicious! I get your emails!
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Hey Lauren!
You saved me again! LOL. Was wondering what to make for dinner on this dreary day and this sounds like just the ticket. Haven’t made these in ages and they are easy peasy. Yummy too. Thanks for sharing.
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These sound so simple and tasty! When you cook the meatballs for 30 mins – 3 hrs, do you cook them on medium still or low?
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Christy — December 7th, 2012 @ 7:14 am
Nevermind, I just now saw where you said to reduce heat.
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Signed up for emails!
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oh these are my faves every year – thanks for the yummy recipe! I actually crave these things with those baked bagel chips. Not pregnant here lol
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I already had plans to do meatballs tomorrow for our game night. I think I’ll use your recipe!
Thanks!
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I LOVE LOVE LOVE meatballs and these look delicious! I will be trying them soon
I already receive your emails 
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I loveeeeeeeee meatballs as an appetizer. My favorite is the grape jelly ones that you just throw in the crockpot with a bottle of heinz chili sauce and let it cook and smell up your house. These look really tasty though–I’ll have to try out!
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Katie Lynn — December 7th, 2012 @ 8:45 am
Those are my favorite too! I had to convince someone (who was going to put BBQ sauce on hers!) that this was better. She has come to see my way of thinking.
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i can’t wait to try this homemade version!!
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Lauren,
I am going to make these meatballs this weekend.
What type of ground beef did you use?
Thanks,
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I receive email updates.
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I liked you and Calphalon on Facebook!
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Love meatballs! So simple and easy to make for a party! Usually mine has apricot preserves but these sound delicious!
All ready receive emails
)
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These look wonderful, I used to make my meatloaf with a sauce like this instead of ketchup. Can’t wait to try them.
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Meatballs are something that I am just now putting in our meal plans and my family seems to enjoy them. I’ll have to try this one out. And I’m a subscriber!
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Sounds just like a recipe my grandmother used to make. I remember thinking that adding ketchup was so weird! I receive your emails. Thanks for another giveaway!
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Oh these look fantastic! I strangely love making meatballs even though I rarely eat them.
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I am signed up for your e-mails!
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This is one item my whole family loves! Meatballs. Can’t wait to try this recipe!
Yum Yum!
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Love the pictures with your directions – sepecially the ingredient picture! So creative (~_*)
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These look soo good!!
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I’ll take these
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So true- my aunt’s smokies always get devoured first in our family!! These sound so good. I would be the hero of Christmas if I brought these to go alongside the smokies!
My boyfriend’s mom has a full SET of Calphalon stuff and I drool over it every time we visit. Lucky you!!
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I recieve emails!
Yummy recipe – my mother-in-law makes mini sweet and sour meatballs during the holidays and I really love them! It grosses me out that there is ketchup involved, but it works!
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I subscribe to your emails and would LOVE these pans!
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Hi again lauren!
Checking back in again. Made the meatballs for dinner and they were sooo good! Will have to keep the recipe handy for a fast and easy meal. Thanks again for sharing.
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Those look delicious!
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These look so yummy! Thanks for sharing!
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I receive your e-mails, meatballs look awesome
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Email subscriber here, thanks for the chance.
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I subscribe to your emails.
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I receive your emails
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Please sign me up for emails and the drawing!
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These meatballs look really good!! And I’m the opposite only associating meatballs with spaghetti! I get your emails.
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I love Calphalon! I have a set of knives and some pots and love them. I need to replace a few non-Calphalon pots I have and these would be perfect!
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Love this recipe, will be making for Christmas Eve…I receive your email as well.
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I get your emails!
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I love meatballs for a party better than in spaghetti. I’m a subscriber
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I subscribe to Lauren’s Latest via e-mail.
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Oh my. I was wondering what to do with my ground beef. This is better than meatloaf! Excellent idea.
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Was planning meatballs as one of the appetizers for a Christmas party I’m planning. These sound like they will fit the bill perfectly!
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I get your emails – love the recipes
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another fine prize!!i subscribe to your blog. I made these meatballs and they are wonderful. Not usually a big fan of meatballs but I liked these and I make some with cranberry sauce and chili sauce that are always a hit.
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I signed up for your emails!
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I signed for your emails! Yum, yum, yum
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I follow every delish bite
!!!!!
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i get your e-mails
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I get your emails!
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These meatballs look so good! I subscribe to your emails!
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