Slow-Cooker Spaghetti and Meatballs

End of July. The new school year is five weeks away and the incoming student files arrive next week. Ryan and I have been together — we are together, that is the correct word now — for seven weeks. He has been to my apartment five times and I have been to his three times and we have been to the farmers market more times than I can count. The tomatoes are at their peak. This is relevant because Ryan bought four pounds of them on Saturday and showed up on Saturday afternoon with them in a grocery bag and said "Sauce." We made a big batch of marinara together, his hands and mine, the way Patty makes it and the way I learned to make it in her kitchen and am now making it in mine with someone standing next to me at the stove.

He met Claudia this week. She knocked when she heard the voices — she always investigates voices, this is her nature — and I introduced them. She said "You're the firefighter." He said yes, ma'am. She said "Good. The building has old wiring." He said "I'll have a look." He actually looked at the wiring in the hallway, which is old, and wrote down three things she should ask the landlord about, which he left with her on a piece of paper from my kitchen notepad. Mrs. Orozco heard about this by Monday morning. I suspect the entire building had heard by Tuesday.

Made the big batch of marinara that afternoon — a full pot, enough for the week and to freeze some. While it simmered we talked about August, about the new students coming, about his schedule for August shifts. He asked to meet T.'s replacement — not T., the new kids. He corrected himself immediately. He said "The new class." He is learning the language. That is a good sign about a person, when they learn your language.

The sauce is in four labeled containers in my freezer. Labeled in my handwriting: "marinara 7/27." Made with his tomatoes. The freezer label seems like something. I am going to let it be something.

The four containers in my freezer — labeled “marinara 7/27” in my own handwriting — needed a purpose worthy of them, and this is it. Slow-cooker spaghetti and meatballs is the kind of dinner that earns a good sauce: low and slow, the meatballs going tender in the pot while you do something else entirely, and then it’s ready and the whole apartment smells the way Patty’s kitchen always did. Pull a container from the freezer, let it thaw overnight, and you’ve already done the hardest part — which, in this case, you did standing at a stove with someone next to you on a Saturday afternoon in late July.

Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 6 hours | Total Time: 6 hours 20 minutes | Servings: 8

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs ground beef (85% lean)
1/3 cup plain breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
1 large egg, lightly beaten
3 cloves garlic, minced (divided)
1 1/2 tsp dried Italian seasoning (divided)
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
3 cups homemade marinara sauce (or one 24 oz jar)
1 can (14.5 oz) crushed tomatoes
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
1 lb spaghetti
Fresh basil leaves, for garnish

Instructions

Mix the meatballs. In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, breadcrumbs, Parmesan, egg, 2 cloves of the minced garlic, 1 tsp of the Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Mix gently with your hands just until combined — do not overwork the meat or the meatballs will be dense.
Form and arrange. Roll the mixture into 1 1/2-inch balls (you should get about 24) and arrange them in a single layer in the bottom of a 6-quart slow cooker.
Build the sauce. In a bowl or large measuring cup, stir together the marinara, crushed tomatoes, remaining 1 clove garlic, remaining 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes if using. Pour evenly over the meatballs.
Cook low and slow. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 7 hours, or on HIGH for 3 to 3 1/2 hours, until the meatballs are cooked through and the sauce is deepened and fragrant. Avoid lifting the lid during cooking.
Cook the pasta. About 15 minutes before serving, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water before draining.
Serve. Plate spaghetti and spoon meatballs and sauce generously over the top. Add a splash of reserved pasta water to loosen the sauce if needed. Finish with extra Parmesan and fresh basil.

Nutrition (per serving)

Slow-Cooker Spaghetti and Meatballs — The Reason the Freezer Label Means Something