Meatball Subs (Rated 5 per husband)

My name is Cerina and I am an Air Force pilot's wife, I absolutely love to cook and live to see the smile on people's face when they enjoy something I've made. I've decided to start this cooking blog, mainly because I thought everyone else is doing it...why can't I?

A little bit about the rating system, every time I try a new recipe I have my husband rate it on a scale from 1 to 5, 1 being the worst and 5 being the best. If something falls to a 2 I usually kick the recipe to the curb, unless I enjoy it of course. Then he just gets to deal with whatever I make.

I originally saw this recipe on the Food Network, Guy Fieri was making it with his son. He calls these Hunters Heroes (his son's name is Hunter), I just call them meatball subs. This is one of my husband's favorite meals. It does take a little bit to assemble these subs, but they are definitely worth every minute spent in the kitchen.These make about 30 meatballs depending on how big you like them, so to speak.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 red onion, diced to equal 1 cup
• 1/2 red bell pepper, minced to equal 1/2 cup
• 5 cloves garlic, minced to equal 2 tablespoons
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup 2 percent milk
• 2 slices sourdough bread, crust removed, cut into 1 /2-inch pieces to equal 1 cup
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 pound ground pork sausage
• 2 tablespoons basil
• 2 tablespoons oregano
• 2 tablespoons parsley
• 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 teaspoons red chili flakes
• 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan
• 1 egg, beaten
• Rolls
• Marinara Sauce (I just use either spaghetti sauce or marinara sauce in a jar)
• Mozzarella Cheese

Preheat Oven. In a large saute pan over medium heat, add 1 tablespoon oil and saute onions, bell peppers and garlic. After 2 minutes, add salt and cook until tender. Remove from pan and let cool.

In a medium bowl, pour milk over bread crumbs and let soak for 5 minutes. Remove from milk and squeeze out excess milk, until bread is moist but not soggy.

In a large bowl, mix together beef, pork sausage, soaked bread, cooled vegetables, basil, oregano, parsley, pepper, chili flakes, grated Parmesan and egg. I use my pampered chef mix-n-chop because I don't really like to touch the meat, so to speak. I also use a cookie scooper to help form the meatballs.

In same large saute pan used for vegetables, heat over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon oil. Cook meatballs, browning completely until no longer pink.

Meanwhile, remove inside dough from rolls. To assemble subs, fill rolls with however many meatballs you like, pour the sauce on top, and sprinkle or put sliced cheese on top. Place subs on a sheet pan under the broiler until the cheese melts and turns golden brown. I also serve with side of marinara sauce for dipping.

The next day I use the leftover meatballs for Spaghetti and meatballs so it doesn't go to waste.