Philly Cheesesteak Meatballs

One plus to this bi-coastal marriage is that there is no one here to tell me that making tacos every other day, even if they are filled with totally different and unrelated ingredients, is too many tacos. In fact, now that I made these little beauties, I'm thinking some kind of meatball stuffed taco thing. Stay tuned.

Speaking of bi-coastal, when we made this moving plan, I knew it would be hard to be apart. Of course I did. I mean, we spend a lot of time together and all of our "what should we do today" plans include each other. So day after day with many days left until we are reunited is making me sad. And crazy. What I didn't know was that being separated for this long would make me crazy. We're talking $2 waffle irons at Wal-Mart black friday crazy. Remember that?

I know, I know, too much mush. But it is almost Valentine's Day - surely you can understand a girl missing her pot.

Yesterday, I was at TJ Maxx, which is a lame place to go when you're in the middle of a move and paying by the ounce to move your crap. It is not the time to be there, seeing all there is to see that you don't have and must get right now as who knows what they have to buy in whatever suburb outside of Boston that I end up in? I mean, what if I can't find this super cute red polka dot casserole dish there? 

So anyway, back to TJ Maxx where I was mindlessly wandering, child free and huge icy diet Coke in hand, my own special nirvana. There I was looking at the purses, minding my own business, when I heard a lady exclaim, "Oh my gosh, look at THIS." Now at TJ Maxx, you have to look. I mean, she could have found ANYTHING there and most likely whoever didn't find it first (in this case, me) really really needs whatever it happens to be. So I looked up kind of sneaky like, out of the corner of my eye because I didn't want her to know I was looking.  She had in her hand a lid. Out of the corner of my eye, it appeared to be a lid much like my blue lid above which meant that underneath that lid was a pot. A pot much like my blue pot above but in red. 

My heart was racing. I mean, seriously, if there was a red Le Creuset pot at TJ Maxx, I was going to have it. No matter what. I would put up with Internet ridicule for fighting $2 waffle iron Black Friday style. Yes I most certainly would.

So Red Lid Holder's friend said, "How much?" You know what Red Lid Holder said? "Sixty-nine dollars." Okay, so now I had no choice but to size up Red Lid Holder and her friend. Could I take them both? Probably not with my regular strength but with super caffeinated me combined with the adrenalin rush of having my very own red Le Creuset for $69? Yes. Yes I could. 

But wait! A miracle was happening. They were walking away! Walking away from my red Le Creuset pot. This was a dream come true. But I must remain calm and cool. I want to run over and grab it and hold it above my head trumphant winner style. Stop, I told myself. Look at two more purses. And then stroll over. No one is there. It's yours. Just stay calm. I looked at two more purses. Walked calmly over. 

At this point, I'm pretty sure I'm going to have a stroke before I get there. I have decided I won't even pack it. It will ride on my lap in the airplane all the way to some suburb somewhere around Boston. I will buckle it in. We will be in love. My blue pot will be jealous, but it will understand when it sees the glorious red of my new red Le Creuset. I am about 3 feet from sweet victory when I realize the pot is an impostor! It is not a Le Creuset but a Cuisinart. I have been had. And I am mad. Mad and sad.

Oh but the meatballs? They were really good and since my blue pot (sorry for almost cheating on you Mr. Blue) is somewhere in Massachusetts, I had to improvise. I baked the meatballs on my Silpat and it was brilliant! Mr. Blue is awesome but often requires a little scrubbing with the SOS pads after something like meatballs. The Silpat, however, basically wiped clean!



Philly Cheesesteak Meatballs
Recipe by Michelle's Dinner Bell

1 lb lean ground sirloin
1 pkg dry onion soup mix
4-5 oz can mushrooms, drained and chopped
1 egg
1/2 cup grated Parmesan (green can is fine here) or bread crumbs
1 pkg Laughing Cow Light Creamy Swiss wedges, each wedge cut in half

  1. Mix everything except the cheese wedges.  Form into a rectangle about the size of a brick and cut into 16 equal sized pieces.  
  2. Roll each half wedge of cheese into a ball.
  3. Flatten each meat square a bit and then wrap around a cheese ball making sure to seal the cheese into the ball.
  4. Bake meatballs at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes.
These would be great with pasta or as a sandwich.  I served mine over Red Pepper Relish made in my slow cooker.  I baked the meatballs early in the day, prepared the peppers and then about an hour before dinner, put the meatballs in the slow cooker to heat them back up. The steam of the slow cooker made them super moist and imparted a bit of the red pepper flavor into the meatballs.

Slow Cooker Red Pepper Relish

2 large red bell peppers, cut into thin strips
2 sweet onions, thinly sliced
1-1/2 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons light olive oil
1 tablespoon honey
Kosher salt and pepper to taste and a pinch of red pepper flakes
  1. Combine all ingredients in slow cooker, mix well.
  2. Cover and cook on low 4-5 hours.
Enjoy!












2 comments:

  1. you make me laugh.

    Who knows, maybe you'll find the REAL Mr.Red at a TJMaxx in Massachusetts :)...they do have TJ Maxx stores, right?

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    Replies
    1. I will have to google that, Jen.... I have become a master at googling what they do and do not have there.

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