Turkey Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

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Adapted From New York Times

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• 1 ½ pounds ground turkey (*for 1 pound turkey, see below)
• ½ cup grated parmesan cheese
• ½ cup panko or any plain dry breadcrumbs
• ¼ cup onion, minced (l like to either grate the onions or cook them until soft)
• ¼ cup chives or basil, chopped (I use Italian parsley)
• 2 garlic cloves, grated on a microplane or minced
• 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
•  Pinch red pepper flakes
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (or more as needed to sauté)
• 3 cups marinara sauce (see recipe for Simple Delicious Tomato Sauce)

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1. In a large bowl, combine cheese, bread crumbs, onion, chives, garlic, salt, pepper, oregano and red pepper flakes.
2. Add turkey and egg and blend well. Form into 28 meatballs, each about 1 ¼-inches in diameter.
3. Pan fry (see step 4) or place on a sheet pan, brush with a bit of olive oil, and bake at 400 for 25 minutes.
4. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large sauté pan. When hot, add enough of the meatballs to fit in one layer without crowding, and brown on all sides, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove from pan, add another tablespoon of olive oil, and brown another batch of meatballs. Repeat until all meatballs are browned, adding more oil as needed.
5. Remove the last batch of meatballs and add the marinara sauce to pan; bring to a simmer, scraping up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan.
6. Return meatballs and their juices to pan, shake pan to cover the meatballs with sauce, and lower heat. Partly cover pan and simmer until the meatballs are cooked through, about 15 minutes.

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