North End Sunday Gravy

Total Time: 4 hrs 30 mins Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 4 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 12
• 1 lb sweet italian sausage
• 1 recipe meatballs (recipe follows)
• 1/2 lb piece beef
• 1/2 lb piece lamb or 2 -3 lean lamb chops
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• dried basil
• dried mint
• red pepper flakes
• 1/2 tablespoon sugar (to taste)
• 1 (12 ounce) can tomato paste
• 2 (28 ounce) cans ground tomatoes
• 2 (28 ounce) cans water
• salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/4 lb ground lamb
• 1 cup italian seasoned breadcrumbs
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley or 8 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, minced

Recipe

• 1 fry beef and lamb in 1/4 cup of olive oil in a large saucepot.
• 2 remove meats as they brown and add another 1/4 cup oil to the juices in the pan.
• 3 saute the onion, garlic, and 2 pinches each of the seasonings until the onion is transparent.
• 4 stir in the tomato paste and cook, stirring, until the paste melts into the oil. this is called "italian roux".
• 5 stir in an extra couple of pinches of the seasonings. add the tomatoes and blend.
• 6 fill the two tomato cans with water and add water until the sauce is as thick as you like it. remember the sauce is going to cook down.
• 7 let the sauce come to a boil and add salt and pepper and an additional 2 pinches of seasonings.
• 8 return the meat to the pan and simmer, uncovered, for 2 hours. stir every 15 minutes or so using a wooden spoon.
• 9 brown the sausages in some olive oil and add to sauce with sugar to taste. simmer another hour.
• 10 make meatballs and either fry in oil or bake in oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. add to sauce.
• 11 cook for an additional hour. add water as it cooks if you think it needs it, but you should have a sauce that doesn't separate on the plate.
• 12 remove meats and let sauce settle for a few minutes until fat rises to the top. skim as much fat as possible from the sauce. the less fat it contains, the better the sauce.
• 13 this sauce freezes beautifully.