Pasta with Pork Meatballs and Tomato Sauce

This is simply a comfort food crowd pleaser!

You will need 454g of minced pork. Minced pork is great because when you start "manipulating" it it forms a very dense and tasty meatball.

To make the meat balls first very finely dice a big onion, and sweat it in a small covered saucepan with a glug of olive oil for 15 mins or so, after 10 mins add a finely crushed(!) garlic clove. Meanwhile grab a large bowl, and into it place the minced pork, a good tablespoon of finely chopped fresh parsley, twice that amount of grated parmesan cheese, and a beaten egg. Add the onion and garlic once cooked and with your hands mix everything very well - adding a good couple of pinches of salt and a few turns of a pepper mill.

 Once it is all really well mixed, tip a cup of plain flour into a shallow dish, and sprinkle with a pinch of salt and some ground black pepper to season the flour, and start to form your meatballs. They need to be about a large walnut size - you will probably get 25 - 28 from this mixture. Each time you form one , roll it in the flour until well covered and place on a deep tray. Once the tray is full of the meatballs, cover it with clingfilm and place in the fridge for an hour.

For the tomato sauce - dice an onion and slowly sweat in a covered pan with a glug or two of olive oil, for 10 mins, then add a tin of good plum tomatoes, don't break the tomatoes up as they are bitter until really well cooked. Simmer for 30 mins covered, then break the tomatoes up, add salt and pepper and a bayleaf and a cup of milk and a little more good olive oil, then simmer for a further ten minutes.

To cook the meatballs heat some olive oil in a frying pan and fry the meatballs until well browned in batches of about 7-10 at a time depending on the pan size, when they are browned add them to the tomato sauce which has been cooking for 40 mins, after all the meatballs are added take two spoonfuls of the tomato sauce out of the pan and add to the frying pan to de glaze it - this will be a feisty moment!, and tip the deglazed contents back into the sauce.  Now place your pasta ( 5 oz for two people) into a pan of boiling weater and cook according to the packet details ( usually 10-12 mins|). Once ready - remove the meatballs with a slotted spoon and keep in a warmed bowl, drain the pasta and add to the sauce, mix really well and serve and place the meatballs on top  Fab!!