I have a fear that I am becoming a bit of a food snob. Let me change that – I think I am becoming more picky about my food. (I don’t ever want to be a real food snob!!) And I think blogging has changed me. It has definitely changed the way I look at food and what I choose to cook and what ingredients I use. I still think I am a down home cook – I prefer comfort to fancy schmancy. But earlier this week, my husband and I took a trip to Las Vegas. We didn’t have any definite plans of where we wanted to eat. The first night, we had a show to go to (Celine Dion!!) at 8:30, and we had just driven down that day, so we stuck with a restaurant in our hotel. We stayed at Planet Hollywood (formerly the Alladin) and decided to try their steak house – called Strip House. It just opened in September, but we were able to get in without reservations. We each ordered a rib eye steak, and I ordered a baked potato and he ordered black truffle creamed spinach. The steaks were amazing. My husband said that it was the best steak he has ever had, and that is saying a lot because we eat steaks quite often. The potato was just a potato, but his spinach was very good. We had good service, good food – a great experience. The next morning, we went over the the Paris casino. I have never tried a macaron before, and had heard that there was a bakery there that sometimes has them. Well, they didn’t have them, but we shared a few pastries for breakfast and they were all very good. For lunch, one of the employees in the mall at the hotel said that the hotel’s cafe was very good, so we ate there. We shared some Kobe beef sliders to start and then each ordered a salad. Again – great service and great food. That night we ordered room service, and although the man who delivered the food was really nice and friendly, the food was just so-so. We saved up our appetite for lunch the next day because everyone says that you have to go to a buffet while you are in Vegas. I have always heard good things about the buffet at the Bellagio, so we walked over. It was – by far – the worst food that we ate the whole trip. In fact, each of us have sworn off buffets for the rest of our lives, unless it is a breakfast buffet. It was that bad. The desserts were decent, but everything else was either overcooked or just tasted badly.
So this is why I wonder if I am becoming a food snob – am I “too good” to enjoy what so many people call a great buffet?? Maybe we were just there on an off day, maybe it’s because we’d enjoyed such great food up to that point – but I’d like to say that I am just a smart eater now.
So what does the meatball sandwich have to do with food snobbery?? Not a whole lot, except this is a recipe that is sure to please the pickiest of eaters. The meatball recipe is modified slightly from one of the meatball recipes in The Joy of Cooking. You can turn the wonderful meatballs into a filling, delicious dinner by adding cheese and your favorite marinara sauce, and putting it all on hoagie roll. Now that’s good, down home food…
Italian Meatballs
adapted from The Joy of Cooking
1 slice bread
1/2 – 3/4 lb. ground beef
1/2 – 3/4 lb. sausage
2 eggs
3 Tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano, or 3/4 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon fresh oregano
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 cup finely diced onion
1 clove finely diced garlic
Preheat oven to 350F.
Soak one slice of bread in water, milk, or stock to cover.
Take ground beef and sausage and put them in a bowl. Add eggs, Parmesan cheese, oregano, parsley, salt and paprika.
In a small skillet, brown onion in butter or olive oil. Add garlic and saute.
Add onions and garlic to meat mixture. Wring the liquid from the bread and add it to the meat mixture. Mix everything together and form into 1 inch balls.
Place balls in a casserole dish and place in preheated oven. Cook for about 30 minutes, or until done. I turned mine over half way through.
I made a full batch and got about 30 meatballs. We only used a few for the sandwiches, so I put the remainder on a cookie sheet and put them in the freezer. Once they are frozen solid, you can transfer them to a ziploc bag to keep in the freezer. I’m planning on using the frozen meatballs for a dinner next week, so I’ll let you know how they work!
I’ll take that meatball sub over most foods anytime!
OK, now that my mouth is seriously watering…
Teaser!!!!!! I had a plate of salad for dinner – aaarghhh! Drooooling over this!
Sounds like you had a good time, with lots of food.
Kobe beef sliders sound excellent.
I’ve been wanting to make some macarons, but the recipes sound really hard.
That buffet sounds sucky. It’s probably like that all of the time.
I think that buffets in general are icky. My husband, who prefers fast food of the Wendy’s variety, doesn’t like buffets. So I hardly think it’s food snobbery, it’s just good sense.
That meatball sub looks REALLY good right now!
Oh my gosh… this looks messy and good!
I have yet to have a fab buffet in Vegas except at Mandalay Bay. They had a fantastic champagne brunch buffet!
I love Vegas though… I’d eat so so food just to be there
Twenty years ago and further back was when the Vegas buffets were good…and cheap. Since that time, the number and quality of them have dwindled to almost nothing. It’s amazing how different a steak tastes depending on where you are in the country or where the restaurants are obtaining their beef from. I grew up in Kansas but live in New York now. There is no comparison to grass-fed Kansas or Colorado beef, and many chefs are demanding it because there is a distinct difference in the flavor and tenderness. Fortunately, there is a place about an hour’s drive from us in Connecticut that sells Kansas beef and we go there to stock up.
Nice looking meatball sub. The Kobe beef sliders sound interesting.
That’s a great shot of your meatballs =)
Don’t worry about becoming more picky about your food, when you cook a lot of gorgeous things at home (as you do), you just expect good things when you’re out too!
KJxx
sometimes i feel myself on the same situation.;of being a “real critic and picky”..i guess this is the reason why we go to restaurant less and less.;we always find something to complain about the food prepared..without a doubt that meatball sandwiches is a sure homerun recipe!!!
This meatball sandwich would certainly be a hearty meal!!!! I tend to Google restaurants and reviews before I go anywhere. I hate to have bad food since I remember vacations by what was on my table!!I also ask the locals if I can. But I can’t always win!
Wow! That is one hellasandwich! Awesome!
Nothing beats comfort food like a meatball sub. As for buffets , having worked and work at times in the industry, it can get get quite gross.No matter how attentive the attendants , it conjels, people hover over it and touch it, and breath on it, it dries out and gets over cooked. Breafast are cool because the good stuff is made to order.
I don’t think you’re becoming a food snob. I think the trouble is that the better a cook one becomes, the higher standard one has for restaurants.
By the way, don’t look now but you have a spammer posted on this thread – the dude posting about ordering food online.
Oh my word – I HEART meatball sandwiches. Ironically, my favorite one of all time was the one they served back at the college dining common. It was SO good. I may have to try yours:) I just don’t order them b/c they are not exactly good for you, but if I make it myself I have more room to make it my own. Thanks for the recipe!