Admittedly, pasta is one of the most typical food and appreciated the Mediterranean diet as named in our country and although it never achieved the popularity and development that had and has in Italy, today is an ingredient that lack in our kitchens, in all its forms and elaborations, whether noodles, espaghettis, fettuccine, tagliatelle, macaroni, tortellini, etc. ..
The origin of pasta is a very controversial subject, the more likely the situation in China, where he arrived in Italy in the thirteenth century by the famous travels of Marco Polo by Asian routes, but it has been shown that both India and even in other Middle Eastern countries, and also elaborated a kind of pasta called "sebica" whose meaning comes to be "stranded". Word that comes to have a common denominator with the word "spaghetti", short for the Italian word "spago" meaning "string."
I read that the paste is believed to have been introduced in Italy before birth even Marco Polo, in the eleventh century and which also reached Spain as there are documents attesting that their consumption had a big swing at that time primarily in the area Levante and Andalucia. The oldest name used in Spain to designate the pasta, was "noodles" and first appears in an Arabic manuscript of the thirteenth century.
They were the noodles, sold rolled and had to split them first pasta consumed in the kitchen of my grandmother and my mother then, over the years were the espaghettis and macaroni those who came to our pantries, to today we can find all kinds of pasta in the nearest supermarkets.
On this occasion I have prepared some spaghetti with meatballs inspired (I have not followed faithfully in his footsteps, not exact ingredients) in a recipe for a great cook who had the good fortune to meet, a master of gastronomy who follow and admire : MARTIN BERASATEGUI .
How do I do?
The noodles use egg Gallo brand.
Ingredients for meatballs:
A quarter kilo of ground beef, 50 grams of chopped smoked bacon (I bought it in pieces and pique in my meat grinder), a tablespoon of ketchup sauce, a tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce (you can find in any supermarket), an small piece of grated Manchego cheese, one egg, two pieces of bread soaked in milk, flour and fresh basil leaves (alternatively be used dry, although the taste is not the same).
Ingredients for the sauce:
A small red onion, medium yellow pepper, two cloves of garlic, two carrots, three or four grated ripe tomatoes, olive oil (preferably Malaga, currently using Riogordo), a spoonful of sugar, salt, two bay leaves five or six black peppercorns, half small glass of red wine.
The steps to make meatballs:
In a bowl mix the ground beef, bacon, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, egg, cheese, bread soaked in milk, finely chopped basil and salt to taste, kneading all the ingredients, then form balls of desired size and then dust with flour.
Heat oil in a pan and fry until golden brown. Escurriéndolas well and reserving them out.
While preparing the sauce:
In a saucepan, cover the bottom with oil, add the chopped onion, garlic, carrot and bell pepper also cut into small pieces, salt and fry over low heat for about ten minutes, add the tomatoes, sugar and wine then letting him do ten minutes. Season with salt.
Pass the sauce through the blender and add the bay leaf and black pepper.
Pour the meatballs in the sauce, stir and cook for a few minutes. Remove and reserve hot.
Cocer pasta according to manufacturer's instructions chorreoncito water with oil and salt to taste. Drain well.
Generally you should mix the pasta with the sauce and meatballs, I personally like emplatarla next door and every guest the mix.
At emplatar sprinkle the dish with chopped fresh black pepper ... if you like, of course.
