Italian Appetizer Meatballs

Total Time

Prep: 40 min. Cook: 2 hours

Makes

4 dozen

Updated: Jul. 27, 2023
Store-bought spaghetti sauce speeds up the preparation of these homemade meatball appetizers. Leftovers make terrific sub sandwiches. —Rene McCrory, Indianapolis, Indiana
Italian Appetizer Meatballs Recipe photo by Taste of Home

Ingredients

  • 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
  • 1/4 cup 2% milk
  • 2 teaspoons grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 pound ground beef
  • 1 pound bulk Italian sausage
  • 2 jars (24 ounces each) spaghetti sauce
  • Minced fresh parsley, optional

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400°. In a large bowl, combine the first 7 ingredients. Crumble beef and sausage over mixture and mix lightly but thoroughly. Shape into 1-in. balls.
  2. Place meatballs on a greased rack in a shallow baking pan. Bake until no longer pink, 15-20 minutes.
  3. Transfer meatballs to a 4-qt. slow cooker; add spaghetti sauce. Cover and cook on high for 2-3 hours or until heated through. Garnish with parsley if desired.

Nutrition Facts

1 meatball: 67 calories, 4g fat (1g saturated fat), 20mg cholesterol, 264mg sodium, 4g carbohydrate (2g sugars, 1g fiber), 4g protein.