Best 7 Ricotta Meatballs Giada Recipes

MEATBALL SALAD

Steps:

• For the meatballs: Combine the Parmesan, ricotta, breadcrumbs, milk and egg in a medium bowl and stir well to combine and allow the breadcrumbs to absorb the liquid. Add the pork, sausage and salt and use your hands to mix gently to combine.
• Heat a medium straight sided skillet over medium heat. Add enough oil to cover the bottom of the skillet. Roll heaping tablespoons of the meat mixture into balls and place in the hot oil. Add as many as the skillet will allow without overcrowding, working in two batches if needed. Brown the balls on all sides, rotating as needed, about 8 minutes. Remove the balls to a plate and pour off the oil from the skillet. Add the marinara and 1/4 cup water to the skillet and bring to a simmer. Return the balls to the sauce and cover the skillet. Allow to simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat.
• For the salad: Meanwhile, toss together the arugula, Parmesan shavings, olive oil and lemon juice in a medium bowl.
• Spoon 5 or 6 meatballs into a bowl, then top with some of the salad and serve. Repeat to make 4 more servings.

BAKED ZITI WITH MEATBALLS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a large bowl, combine bread crumbs, eggs, milk, 1/2 cup of the Romano and the parsley, and mix well. Season with salt and pepper. Add beef and gently combine, being careful not to overwork the meat. Shape into bite-size meatballs. Roll each meatball in flour to coat, shaking off excess.
• In a large pot, bring 6 quarts of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain pasta in a colander and set aside. If not using immediately, cover top with plastic wrap so that pasta does not dry out. Do not rinse pasta with water since you want to retain the pasta's natural starches so that the sauce will cling to the ziti.
• In a large skillet heat the oil over medium-high heat. When almost smoking, add meatballs in batches and without moving or turning the meat, allow it to brown for about 3 minutes. Turn meatballs and brown other side. Continue to cook until all sides are golden brown. Remove meatballs to a plate.
• In a large bowl, combine the tomato sauce and ricotta and mix well. Add the cooked ziti and meatballs and toss gently.
• In a large greased baking dish, pour in pasta mixture. Sprinkle the mozzarella, Parmesan, and remaining Romano all over the top. Dot with the butter. Place baking dish on top of baking sheet covered with aluminum foil to collect any drippings from the dish. Bake until top is golden brown and bubbly, about 30 to 40 minutes.

RICOTTA AND CINNAMON MEATBALLS

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, whisk together the shallots, garlic, egg, cinnamon and nutmeg. With a wooden spoon, stir in the ground beef, orzo, ricotta and basil. Add the salt, pepper and 1/4 cup water and mix well.
• Bring the marinara to a simmer in a shallow 12-inch skillet. Form the meat mixture into balls (about 1 heaping tablespoon each). Drop the meatballs into the simmering sauce, cover the skillet and simmer for 15 minutes. Serve on small toothpicks or skewers.

MEATBALLS WITH SUNDAY GRAVY, WHIPPED RICOTTA AND 'CHERRY' TOMATO SALAD

Steps:

• In a small bowl, soak the bread slices in milk until completely soft. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the olive oil, onions and garlic and saute until translucent, about 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. In a large bowl, combine the ground meats with the dried seasonings, Parmesan, cooked onions, the eggs, salt and the bread mixture. Mix with your hands until well combined. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Remove the chilled meat mixture from the refrigerator. Roll the mixture into 12 large meatballs. In a large skillet, add about 1/2-inch of canola oil. Heat the pan over medium-high heat. Fry the meatballs until browned on all sides. Cook them in batches, if they don't all fit in the pan at once. Set aside.
• In a large pot, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat and saute the onions and garlic until soft, about 6 minutes. Stir in the banana, red pepper flakes and crushed tomatoes. Add the meatballs, lower the heat and simmer the sauce until thickened and the meatballs are cooked through, about 1 hour. Taste and season with salt and pepper, if needed.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Put the garlic heads on a large square of foil, cut side up. Drizzle them with olive oil and wrap them up tightly. Put the packet on a baking sheet and roast for 30 minutes. Remove the garlic from the wrap and let it cool. Squeeze the garlic out of the heads into a small bowl. Stir in the softened butter, salt and parsley and blend well. Generously spread the butter mixture on each half of the bread. Put the bread halves on a sheet pan and bake until toasty and brown, about 15 minutes. Slice each half of the bread into 12 slices.
• Whipped Ricotta:
• In a large bowl, combine the ricotta, milk, half-and-half and salt and pepper, to taste. Using a whisk, blend everything together until creamy and fluffy.
• Tomato Salad:
• Stir together the olive oil, salt and pepper and basil. Toss the tomatoes in the oil.
• To serve the meatball 'sundae': put 3 meatballs and some sauce in each shallow bowl, top with some of the tomato salad, and the whipped ricotta. Arrange the bread slices on the sides of the meatballs to resemble a banana split and serve.

MORTADELLA MEATBALL SLIDERS

Steps:

• For the meatballs: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Combine the cheese, breadcrumbs, milk, oregano, lemon zest, salt and egg in a medium bowl. Add the pork and mortadella and gently fold the mixture until fully and evenly combined.
• Drizzle 2 tablespoons olive oil on a small rimmed baking sheet. Scoop the mixture into 12 golf-ball sized balls and roll until smooth. Place on the baking sheet. Drizzle with the remaining tablespoon olive oil and bake, 15 minutes.
• For the sauce: Meanwhile, pulse the pistachios in a food processor until coarsely chopped. Add the basil, parsley and salt and pulse to combine. And the olive oil and 1/4 cup cold water and puree until it's a relatively smooth paste. Add the cheese and pulse to combine.
• Remove the meatballs from the oven and spread a teaspoon of pesto on each meatball. Bake for an additional 5 minutes.
• For the sliders: Spread a little pesto on the top and bottom of each bun. Place a pinch of arugula on the bottom and a meatball on the arugula. Top with the top half of the buns and serve.

CHEF JOHN'S RICOTTA MEATBALLS

Steps:

• Saute onion in 2 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet over medium heat until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir garlic into onion and turn off heat. Transfer onion mixture to a large mixing bowl.
• Stir ground beef, ricotta cheese, parsley, egg, kosher salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper with onion mixture until almost combined; stir in bread crumbs and continue to mix until thoroughly blended.
• Roll about 2 tablespoons of mixture into a 1-inch ball for each meatball. Pour 2 tablespoons olive oil in same skillet used to cook onions. Place skillet over medium heat and brown meatballs on all sides in hot oil, about 5 minutes. Hold a crumpled paper towel in a tongs and use it to remove excess grease from skillet.
• Pour marinara sauce and water over meatballs in skillet. Stir to combine and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until meatballs are cooked through and no longer pink in the center, about 30 minutes.

GIADA'S BAKED ZITI WITH MEATBALLS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a large bowl, combine bread crumbs, eggs, milk, 1/2 cup of the Romano and the parsley, and mix well. Season with salt and pepper. Add beef and gently combine, being careful not to overwork the meat. Shape into bite-size meatballs. Roll each meatball in flour to coat, shaking off excess.
• In a large pot, bring 6 quarts of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain pasta in a colander and set aside. If not using immediately, cover top with plastic wrap so that pasta does not dry out. Do not rinse pasta with water since you want to retain the pasta's natural starches so that the sauce will cling to the ziti.
• In a large skillet heat the oil over medium-high heat. When almost smoking, add meatballs in batches and without moving or turning the meat, allow it to brown for about 3 minutes. Turn meatballs and brown other side. Continue to cook until all sides are golden brown. Remove meatballs to a plate.
• In a large bowl, combine the tomato sauce and ricotta and mix well. Add the cooked ziti and meatballs and toss gently.
• In a large greased baking dish, pour in pasta mixture. Sprinkle the mozzarella, Parmesan, and remaining Romano all over the top. Dot with the butter. Place baking dish on top of baking sheet covered with aluminum foil to collect any drippings from the dish. Bake until top is golden brown and bubbly, about 30 to 40 minutes.