Polpette al Pomodoro - Pork Meatballs

I found this recipe in an Italian cooking Magazine issue. My Italian vocabulary is good enough to understand the list of ingredients and the cooking method.

As always, I made my own version of the recipe and I can recommend it. Meatballs are so versatile, when some are left, put them in the freezer and use them for other dishes.
Make your own SUBWAY meatball Sub!

Preparing the tomato sauce was easy for me, I still have some frozen packages of last years tomato Sauce season. Just two more are left, they will last until this years crop is finally ready to be harvested. This years heat waves and ups and down and cold spring were not so good for tomatoes outside without any cover or protection. But the vines are hanging full of green ones and there are still flowers for more. Now the middle of August is cold and wet here and not much sun to be seen. I hope to harvest more then just a hand full soon.

recipe for 4:
660 g pork mince
150 g Italian Mortadella thinly sliced
1 egg
2 bead rolls
milk
2 tbsp Grana padano
2 spring onions
3 cloves of garlic
nutmeg
2 tbsp flat leaf parsley
1 tsp Italian herbs
salt and pepper
1 1/2 tbsp breadcrumbs
flour
olive oil

Tomato Sauce:
400 g jar of passata
400 g ready cooked Sauce
2 cloves of garlic
2 shallots
1 Hand full cherry tomatoes
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp Piment d`Espelette
1/2 Cup water
salt and pepper

First, start with the dry bread rolls and soak them in milk until soft. Squeeze out.
Grate some cheese.
Finely chop the parsley, the White of the spring onions and mince the garlic through a press.
Finely chop the Mortadella slices. Put all that with the  pork mince and he other ingredients in a bowl. Season and make a good mix with your hands. Rest in the fridge for half an hour to firm up again.

Defrost the tomato sauce in a bigger pot. Add onion and garlic and .the fresh Tomatoes and wait until everything is defrosted. Pour in the passata and the balsamic vinegar and season to taste. Add water for more sauce and let it cook a while.

Make meatballs the size of golf balls and roll them in the flour.
In a wide pan with a lid, get in the oil and on medium high heat fry off the meatballs on all sides.
That will take up to 15 min.
Get them out of the pan and pour the fat into a container to discard later - do not pour it down the drain!
Transfer the tomato sauce to the pan and put the meatballs back in. Bring back to simmer and close the lid and reduce the heat to cook as long as you will need to start and finish your Pasta.

Serve with a bit more cheese and parsley.