Mama Bordonaro's Spaghetti Sauce with
Meatballs and/or Brochette
Recipes submitted by Louis Bordonaro
Nationality/Ethnicity – Italian
The Story Behind the Recipe
My mother,
father, older sister and brother emigrated from Sicily in 1928. My
father had actually been here off and on since 1913, working on the
railroads in upstate New York. He had to return to Italy in 1916 to
join the Italian army, which was fighting the Germans in WWI.
We lived in an
older two-story house on the west side of Ithaca, New York, in a
neighborhood that was very diverse. On the right side of us was a couple
from Ireland and on our left was a couple from Sweden and Italy. Across
the street lived a couple from Poland and another couple from Germany.
Sprinkled throughout the blocks surrounding our house were more Italians
than any other ethnic group.
We frequented
the local Italian grocery stores in our neighborhood, which were very
small and sold, as I recall, the greatest tasting bread in the world,
still warm from the bakery down the street. When you walked in, you
could smell the pungent aroma of the cheeses and meats hanging on
strings from the ceiling and the olives and pickles in barrels. When
entering the store, the owner would always greet me by my first name and
ask about my mother and father. Up the street was a Jewish grocery that
sold bagels and lox and had a kosher deli. Some of the people who came
to work in this store after WWII had numbers tattooed on their arms, but
I did not understand the significance of that until much later.
My mother and
father both worked, so our main meal was always Sunday, when my mother
would rise at 7 a.m. and start her spaghetti sauce. It would simmer on
the stove for hours and the smells that wafted through the house were
awesome. I enjoyed tearing the Italian bread in half, digging out the
center, which was moist and soft, and dipping it into the sauce. I could
do that until my mom came into the kitchen and caught me.
We would
normally eat around three o'clock, so as to give everyone time to get
home. At that time, most people dressed very well for Sunday dinner.
After dinner, my father would lay out cheese, homemade wine, and grapes.
The next course would be Italian cookies and coffee or milk for the
younger ones. For the rest of the evening the adults would talk,
catching up on the week's events. No one listened to the radio and,
obviously, there were no televisions, just good conversations. What a
great time to be growing up!
Meatballs
Ingredients:
-
1½ pounds
ground beef @ room temperature
-
½ pounds
ground pork @ room temperature
-
½ loaf
Italian bread (leave uncovered 1 to 2 days to harden)
-
½ teaspoon
salt
-
2 to 3
tablespoons finely chopped parsley
-
1/3
teaspoon garlic powder
-
Black pepper
to taste
-
2/3
cup grated Parmesan cheese
-
2 eggs @ room
temperature, lightly beaten
Preparation
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Slice off and discard outer
crust of bread, leaving just the inside. Run inside of bread under hot
water to soften, squeezing out all of water with hands. Mix together all
ingredients thoroughly (using your hands works the best). Roll into
approximately 1½" size meatballs. Place on a non-stick cookie sheet (if
not using a non-stick sheet, spray with oil or PAM). Bake for
approximately 15 minutes, then turn over meatballs and bake another 20
minutes. Meatballs should be nicely browned. Remove from oven and set
aside until sauce is
being made.
Makes about
30 meatballs.
Brochette
Ingredients:
-
3 to 4 thin
sandwich steaks (can also use top round or sirloin steaks cut into
thin slices)
-
Chopped
garlic (3 to 5 cloves)
-
Salt and
pepper to taste
-
2 to 3
tablespoons chopped parsley
-
Grated
Parmesan cheese (may also use thinly sliced pieces of Parmesan cheese)
Preparation
Directions:
Pound steaks
until flattened very thin. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, garlic, parsley
and cheese. Roll meat tightly and tie with string. Hold aside until
sauce is being made.
Sauce
Ingredients:
-
2 to 3
tablespoons olive oil
-
3 to 4 cloves
garlic, chopped
-
1 medium
onion cut up
-
1 teaspoon
oregano
-
1 teaspoon
basil
-
5 to 6 sprigs
parsley, chopped
-
1½ cans (12
oz) tomato paste (refill can with hot water)
-
1½ cans (28
oz) cut up tomatoes
-
1 to 2 bay
leaves
-
¾ teaspoon
salt
-
2 tablespoons
sugar
-
½ to ¾ cup
wine
-
½ to ¾ cup
grated Parmesan cheese
Preparation
Directions:
Place oil in
large saucepan. Saute onion and garlic until softened, but not browned.
If making brochette, also brown in oil on all sides. Add oregano, basil,
parsley, tomato paste and can of water. Stir and let cook 1 to 2
minutes. Add bay leaves and tomatoes. If making brochette, cover pot and
cook thoroughly for about 1 hour. If only making meatballs, add now to
sauce. Add enough water to cover meatballs (several cups) and let cook
10 to 15 minutes. Add salt and sugar. Simmer, covered, for 1 to 1 ½
hours, stirring often. Add wine and cheese. Simmer another 5 to 10
minutes. If sauce is too thin, cook uncovered for awhile.
