Penne and Meatballs All’Arrabbiata

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground beef chuck
• 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1 egg white
• Salt and ground black pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 3 1/2 fluid ounces extra-virgin olive oil
• 3/4 cup sliced white button mushrooms
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
• 1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 2 fresh tomatoes, diced
• Salt to taste
• 2 teaspoons white sugar
• 1 (16 ounce) box penne pasta
• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

Directions

Mix beef, panko, 1/4 cup parsley, egg white, salt, and black pepper in a large bowl until combined. Form mixture into 12 meatballs.

Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet; pan-fry meatballs in hot oil until browned on all sides, about 7 to 10 minutes. Remove meatballs from heat.

Heat olive oil in a 6-quart Dutch oven or a large skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir mushrooms in hot oil until tender, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and add garlic and red pepper flakes. Cook and stir until garlic is golden, about 5 minutes more. Stir canned and fresh tomatoes into mushrooms and season with salt.

Drop meatballs into tomato sauce and stir in sugar; bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer uncovered until sauce is reduced and meatballs are no longer pink in the center, about 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a boil. Stir in penne and return to a boil. Cook pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until cooked through but still firm to the bite, about 11 minutes. Reserve 1 cup cooking water, then drain pasta.

Stir penne pasta into meatball sauce; toss to coat. Stir pasta water into mixture if sauce becomes too dry. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup parsley to serve.