Sage Meatballs with Honey Mustard Sauce

A friend came over to our house a couple weeks ago, and brought a thoughtful gift, the second volume of Good Eats by Alton Brown.  The hefty book is filled with great tips, interesting food related facts, and recipes that look worth trying.  As I flipped through the pages, one picture caught my attention.  It was a muffin pan stuffed with meatballs.  According to the book, the mini muffin pan retain shape and cooks more evenly.  What a great idea!  Alton's recipe looked great, but I wanted to apply the method for my own meatball recipe.  The mini muffin pan worked well, however, I felt there was nothing wrong with the meatballs baked on a regular baking sheet.  Perhaps it will take several tries before I fully appreciate the effect of the mini muffin pan.  I'll work on it.

Sage is one of my favorite herbs for meatballs, and it goes well with a mustard flavor.  I prepared two kinds of meatballs along with several sauces to go with.  As I guessed, the honey mustard sauce was the best choice for the sage meatballs.

Sage Meatballs with Honey Mustard Sauce Print Recipe Quantity Ingredients 0.9 lb ground beef (10~15%fat) 0.6 lb ground pork 1 egg 1/4 cup bread crumbs 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp onion powder 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp pink pepper 1 1/2 tsp dried parsley 1 1/2 tsp dried sage Sauce 1/4 cup sour cream 2 tbsp mayonnaise 1 tsp Dijon mustard 1 tsp whole-grain mustard 1/2~1 tsp honey a pinch salt Directions Prepare the meatballs: In a large mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients for meatballs. Mix well until well incorporated. (I recommend using plastic gloves for easy cleaning.) Wrap the bowl and let it rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to overnight. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Divide the meat into 24 even pieces (each piece will be 1.3~1.5 oz.) Shape all the meatballs into balls and place them in a mini muffin pan. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Prepare the Sauce: In a small mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients for the sauce. Serve with the meatballs.  Serves 4~6