Diva Patti shares the secret for ‘Magic Meatballs’

Every time I take these to a party they disappear. That’s why I call them magic meatballs. This recipe is a winner for several reasons.

It’s easy to prepare, I usually have all the ingredients for the sauce in my pantry and the finished meatballs are so versatile. You can serve them as an appetizer with toothpicks, over pasta, with rice or make little meatball sliders with dinner rolls.

I make mine in the Crockpot which is an added bonus because it transports easily and all you have to do is plug it in at your party destination. It also stays nice and hot for several hours. Not that I would know, that’s a guess. I should say “as long as the meatballs last.”

It’s confession time. I don’t usually measure when I make this dish. It’s a “dump and go” recipe so if you don’t have exactly the amount of something called for below, don’t worry.

As long as you have tomato soup, barbecue sauce and grape jelly you’ve got this made. Did you make a squishy face when I said grape jelly? You’ll have to trust me on this; it doesn’t taste like grape at all. It’s the perfect balance of savory and sweet that makes these meatballs so addictive.

MAGIC MEATBALLS

4 pounds meatballs – cooked, homemade or purchased

1 teaspoon oil

1 onion – fine dice

1 tablespoon vinegar – I used balsamic but apple cider vinegar works too

1 teaspoon sugar

1 (10.75 oz.) can tomato soup

1/2 cup water

1 cup barbecue sauce

3/4 cup grape jelly

2 heaping tablespoons mustard – whatever kind you have on hand. I like half course ground, half yellow.

Prepare your meatballs, or defrost them. I won’t tell. Heat a sauté pan. Dice the onion very finely and sauté in oil until translucent. Add the vinegar and sugar and stir. Remove from heat and set aside. In a mixing bowl whisk together the tomato soup, water, barbecue sauce, grape jelly and mustard. Add the onion and stir to combine.

I like to heat the sauce in the microwave for a couple of minutes to dissolve the jelly but that’s optional. Place meatballs in your Crockpot, slow cooker or a heavy-bottomed pot. Pour the sauce over the meatballs and gently stir to coat them in the sauce. Cook on medium until completely heated through.

While we have the tomato soup and grape jelly out, here’s another great recipe for sweet and sour everything. If you mix one can of tomato soup with 1/4 cup grape jelly and 1/4 cup vinegar you have a delicious sauce you can use to bake or dip just about anything. This stuff is really delicious.

I like to pour it over chicken pieces or pork chops and bake in the oven or slow cooker. I also love to use it as a dipping sauce for egg rolls, chicken, seafood or anything that would mix well with sweet and sour sauce.

Frugal foodie fun contributed by Patti Diamond from Divas On A Dime — Where Frugal, Meets Fabulous! www.divasonadime.com Join us on Facebook at divasonadimedotcom.