Meatballs with crushed new potatoes recipe

Who says meatballs always have to be served with spaghetti? This recipe teams meatballs with crushed new potatoes for a fresh take on your usual midweek tea. This meal is reasonably quick to prepare, but if you're in even more of a hurry you could always use shop-bought sauce or meatballs.

Ingredients

For the meatballs:

• 250g minced pork
• 75g dried white breadcrumbs
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 egg
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
• 1-2tbsp freshly chopped sage

For the sauce:

• 400g can chopped tomatoes
• 1 onion, peeled and chopped
• 100ml red wine
• 200g button mushrooms, sliced
• 1tsp caster sugar
• 150ml vegetable or ham stock

For the crushed potatoes:

• 500-750g new potatoes
• 1-2tbsp fat-free fromage frais
• Basil leaves, for garnish

Method

1. Set the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6.
2. To make the meatballs, tip all the ingredients into a bowl and mix together well, seasoning with salt and pepper. Divide the mixture into 9-12 and shape into balls and place in an ovenproof dish.
3. To make the sauce, pour the canned tomatoes into a saucepan and add the onion. Bring to the boil and simmer for 5 mins. Add the remaining ingredients to the pan, bring to the boil and simmer for a further 4-5 mins.
4. Pour the sauce over the meatballs and cover the dish. Bake in the oven for 20 mins, then uncover the dish, stir the meatballs and cook, uncovered, for a further 10-15 mins, or until the meatballs are cooked through.
5. Bring the new potatoes to the boil in water and cook for about 15 mins, until they are just tender. Drain well and crush lightly. Stir in the fromage frais. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Spoon some potato on to plates and top the meatballs. Garnish with basil leaves before serving.