Tyler Florence Meatballs

Last week I was watching Food Network, and Tyler Florence was helping a 12-year-old kid make spaghetti and meatballs for his mom. Since Tyler put MOZZARELLA into the center of them, I was sold. So, my fiancé and I mad meatballs together for the first time. When I looked up the recipe, I realized that there were two similar ones, so I combined them to suit my needs. One was for Food 911 and the other for Tyler's Ultimate. Food 911 and Tyler's Ultimate. I mostly worked off of the Food 911, but altered quantities so that we could eat the leftovers within a week.

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil Tyler ALWAYS uses more oil than I do
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves We used dried, since we don't have a parsley plant. We wish we had used oregano too, though, as it's our new favorite dried herb
1 cup milk
4 thick slices firm white bread, crust removed, cut into cubes, about 2 cups We used a baguette, which ended up being too small after removing the crust--use something with more middle than crust!
2 pounds ground beef We used half this amount
2 pounds ground pork Ditto!
1 egg
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 pound mozzarella cheese, cut into 10 (1-inch) cubes
2 cups heated Sugo Sauce, recipe follows we used really simple tomato sauce based off the other recipe and my previous recipe for tomato sauce
1 pound dried spaghetti
8 fresh basil leaves

Heat 3 tablespoons oil in an ovenproof skillet over medium heat; cook the onions, garlic, and parsley until softened, about 10 minutes Took less than 10 minutes for us. Scrape out onto a plate and allow the mixture to cool; set the pan aside. Pour the milk over the bread into a medium bowl and let it soak while the onions are cooling. Combine the meats in a large bowl and add the egg and Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper. Squeeze the excess milk from the bread and add the bread to the bowl along with the cooled onion mixture We also broke up the bread, I suggest doing that--it's what he did on the show, too. Using your hands, gently combine all the ingredients until they are thoroughly mixed. Don't overmix or the meatballs will be tough. Divide this mixture into 10 pieces and form them into patties. Place a mozzarella cube onto each patty and bring up the sides around the cheese to form a ball completely enclosing the cube. We had some cheese leakage, but that's okay with me!
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat the remaining oil in the skillet over medium heat and brown the meatballs on all sides, about 10 minutes. Put them into the oven and bake until the meatballs are cooked through, about 15 minutes.

Cook the spaghetti in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente, about 6 to 8 minutes. Drain the pasta and put it onto a large serving platter. Pour on half the Sugo Sauce and mix well. Place the meatballs over the spaghetti and garnish with the basil leaves. Serve immediately along with the extra sauce and Parmesan.

Two meatballs each were PLENTY for us--and these are smaller than the original recipe! We split three meatballs the next day in meatball subs (yum!) and we still have two left over. The only change I would make is a little more herbs in the meat mixture itself, probably at least some oregano.