Recipes from The Perils of Paella

Meatballs in Tomato-Garlic Sauce
Nancy Fairbanks

• In a 9-in. cast-iron skillet, cook, stirring occasionally, 1 large, finely chopped onion and 1 finely chopped large green bell pepper over moderate to low heat in 2 tbs. olive oil util vegetables are softened. Cool mixture.
  
  
• In a large bowl combine the onion mixture with 2 lb. fatty ground beef, ½ lb. fatty ground pork, ²3 cup fine dry bread crumbs, 2 ½ tsp. salt, ¼ tsp. freshly grated nutmeg, and ⅓ cup minced fresh parsley leaves.
  
  
• Form level tbs. of mixture into balls (about 90). In skillet heat 1 tbs. olive oil over moderate to high heat until hot (not smoking) and brown meatballs in batches (16 to 20 at a time), shaking skillet frequently so they keep their shape, and adding 3 tbs. more oil as necessary.
  
  
• Transfer browned meatballs with slotted spoon to a bowl.
  
  
• In a 6-quart kettle cook 6 large, minced garlic cloves in 1 tbs. olive oil over moderate to low heat, stirring about 15 seconds. Add on 33 ½-oz. can whole tomatoes with juice and 1 tsp. crumbled, dried oregano and simmer, breaking up tomatoes.
  
  
• Add meatballs and simmer, covered, occasionally stirring gently, 5 minutes or until meatballs are tender and sauce is slightly thickened.
  
  
• Serve meatballs with toothpicks, or use slotted spoon to move meatballs to heated serving dish.
  
  
• Boil sauce gently, stirring until thickened.
  
  
• Season sauce with salt and pepper and spoon over meatballs.
  
  
• Serves 8 or 10 at a tapas buffet.

More about The Perils of Paella
Nancy Fairbanks

While her husband gives an academic lecture nearby, Carolyn opts to spend time in Barcelona, soaking up the sights, eating out, and visiting her friend Roberta. Her first feast is for the eyes—a modern art museum where Roberta is a resident Miro scholar. There, Carolyn catches a performance art piece about death, planted a little too firmly in reality. One of the actors is not acting—she’s dead—as well as a dead ringer for Roberta. And now Carolyn is in the middle of a new investigation of a very unsavory crime, assisting the very reluctant Catalan homicide detective Ildefons Pujol i Serra, not to mention searching for Robbie’s runaway stepson Sammie and fending off local criminals.

ECard for Perils of Paella

(Culinary Mystery with Recipes)
Berkley (Prime Crime) , January 2004
Featuring: Carolyn Blue
304 pages ISBN: 042519390X
Paperback
$5.99

Also by Nancy Fairbanks:
Holy Guacamole! , November 2004
Chocolate Quake , April 2003
Death À L’Orange , June 2002
Truffled Feathers , December 2001
Crime Brûlée , April 2001

(Notify me via e-mail when Nancy Fairbanks releases a new book.)