Ricotta and Cinnamon Meatballs

I absolutely love Giada's recipes. Everything I've ever made were always delicious and the recipes were always straight forward and easy to follow. So when I heard that Giada serves these Ricotta and Cinnamon meatballs at her restaurant in Vegas, I had to make them at home myself! Needless to say, these meatballs were absolutely divine and Dr. Sweetpea was raving about how good they were. Definitely a keeper recipe for us. I think I'll serve these as bite sized appetizers the next time we have a dinner party.

Ricotta and Cinnamon Meatballs

(Source: Giada)

1 large or 2 small shallots, minced (I used 1/4 teaspoon dried onion powder)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 large egg

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 pound ground beef chuck (80 percent lean)

1/4 cup orzo pasta

1/2 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese

1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 (23.5 ounce) jar store-bought marinara sauce

In a medium bowl, whisk together the shallots, garlic, egg, cinnamon and nutmeg. With a wooden spoon, stir in the ground beef, orzo, ricotta and basil. Add the salt, pepper and 1/4 cup water and mix well. Bring the marinara to a simmer in a shallow 12-inch skillet. Form the meat mixture into balls (about 1 heaping tablespoon each). Drop the meatballs into the simmering sauce, cover the skillet and simmer for 15 minutes. Serve on small toothpicks or skewers.

***I shaped mine by using a 2 tablespoon cookie scoop to shape my meatballs and cooked them a little longer in the sauce.