Spaghetti with Fried Meatballs (gluten free, dairy free)

Spaghetti with Fried Meatballs

My mom lovingly refers to this meal as “Spaghetti with Little Hard Meatballs.” It’s a strange name, but It has been a family tradition for generations! I was flooded with emotions and nostalgia while cooking this meal the other night, and I knew it was a recipe I wanted to share with the world. Maybe it will become a family tradition for you too! 

When I was younger, my mom would make this meal as a treat every few months. My aunt and cousin would come over and we’d all gather in the kitchen to cook, eat, and laugh. It was the simplest meal, using canned spaghetti sauce and saltine crackers slathered with butter, but the memories we created while eating it are priceless. 

I make it a little differently now since I can no longer have gluten, but it tastes just as delicious as I remember it! Schar Table Crackers are gluten free and taste exactly like Saltines, so I use those, and gluten free noodles are now a staple! And for the meatballs, I use extra lean ground beef and dredge them in Gluten Free Kentucky Kernel Seasoned Flour. The marina is no longer Chef Boyardee canned spaghetti sauce with meat and is instead Rao’s Marinara, but the flavors are still authentic to me. I just need gluten free, healthier ingredients now! I created this blog to show you that you can still enjoy your favorite meals by making them gluten free and keeping them delicious! 

Now that you have the background story, let’s get into what you’ll need to make this meal!

Ingredients:

1 package gluten free spaghetti (Barilla is my favorite)

32 ounce jar of marinara (I use Rao’s)

1 pound lean ground beef (I used 92% lean)

½ cup diced onion

¾ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

½ cup Gluten Free Kentucky Kernel Seasoned Flour

Avocado oil

Directions:

Cook spaghetti according to package directions and mix with marinara, keep warm

Drizzle avocado oil into deep skillet until bottom is coated, and turn heat to medium-low

In a medium mixing bowl, add ground beef, onions, salt, and pepper, and mix together until combined

Roll about 1 tablespoon of mixture into a ball (there will be 16 balls total), and dredge in flour, repeat for rest of meatballs

Place the flour-coated meatballs into the skillet and cook until no longer pink inside and outside is crispy, turning every few minutes

Plate the spaghetti and meatballs and eat up!