Peggy’s Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Submitted by Peggy Glenn
(Founder Firefighter Bookstore, Huntington Beach CA)

Ingredients

• 4 pounds real good ground beef
• 1 tube of saltine crackers - put 'em in a zip-close plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin - set 'em aside
• 4 eggs
• 2 tablespoons of ketchup
• 1 teaspoon of yellow mustard
• 1 tablespoon of worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons of A1 sauce

Method

Step 1

Making the Meatballs - 2 rules #1 - don't skimp, make 'em yourself, use good ground beef #2 - start 2 days ahead of time to give the flavors time to mingle

Step 2

Mix together 4 eggs 2 tablespoons of ketchup 1 teaspoon of yellow mustard 1 tablespoon of worcestershire sauce 2 tablespoons of A1 sauce

Step 3

Add the saltine crumbs to the mush - let it sit for about 10 minutes to absorb the moisture

Step 4

add in the ground beef and mix it with your hands until the mushy mixture is well blended into the meat

Step 5

cover it and let it sit overnight in the fridge in a bowl

Step 6

Next day: Heat the oven to 325 degrees get out 2 cookie sheets, the kind with sides so the drippings don't spill over use a small scooper or melon baller that ejects the meatballs (I found mine in Bed, Bath & Beyond) Make small meatballs and line 'em up on the cookie sheet - you can put 4 rows side by side

Step 7

bake the meatballs for about 20-25 minutes, no longer

Step 8

remove the meatballs from the pan as soon as it comes out of the oven, use tongs and swipe the meatballs on a paper towel to remove the drippings

Step 9

set the meatballs on a plate to cool - we don't want them to fall apart - so don't pile 'em in a bowl just yet

Step 10

Once you've cooked all the meat and all the meatballs are cool, now comes the sauce and the easy part

Step 11

2 bottles of chili sauce (not cocktail sauce, but found right by it) 2 cans of smooth or whole-berry cranberry sauce, your preference

Step 12

dump these ingredients into a slow cooker and whisk around so it breaks up the cranberry sauce

Step 13

let the slow cooker heat up the sauce for about 30 minutes, and then put in the meatballs to get 'em warm

Step 14

if you have the time, heat them to bubbly, and then cool 'em and leave 'em in the fridge overnight

Step 15

on Party Day, heat 'em up again - yummy