Instructions

Meatballs

Preheat oven to 375° F and line a rimmed sheet pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil.

In a large bowl, combine ground beef and Italian sausage and gently mix to combine.

In a small bowl, whisk together semolina flour and milk and set aside while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

Add salt, chili flakes, parmesan cheese, herbs, and garlic to the meat. Mix together with your hands until everything is evenly dispersed.

Add eggs to the semolina and milk mixture and whisk until smooth. Pour egg mixture into the meat mixture and stir together until just combined, taking care not to over mix.

Scoop or roll 1-1/2 tbsp of the meat mixture into balls and place about 1” apart on your prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, then turn your oven to broil and cook for another 2-3 minutes until meatballs are browned and slightly crispy on the edges.

Marinara Sauce

Heat a large saute pan over medium heat. Add olive oil, cherry tomatoes, and 1/4 tsp of salt and cook, uncovered for 5 minutes, until tomatoes are sizzling and beginning to burst slightly. Cover the pan with a lid and reduce heat to medium-low and continue cooking for another 5 minutes.

At this point, the tomatoes should be starting to soften and should have created a little bit of liquid in the pan.

Add red chili flakes, and garlic and cook, stirring, for 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for another minute, until tomato paste is a deep brick red in color.

Add marinara sauce, the remaining 1/2 tsp of salt, and a few cranks of freshly cracked pepper. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 15-20 minutes until slightly thickened.

While the marinara sauce is simmering, cook pasta according to package instructions, reserving 1/4 cup of the pasta water before straining.

To finish, add butter to marinara sauce, and cook, stirring until melted. Add half of the meatballs and the cooked pasta to the sauce and toss to coat, adding a few splashes of the reserved pasta water to loosen the sauce if needed.

Serve immediately with freshly grated parmesan cheese and torn basil leaves.