JOE’S BIG BEEFY MEATBALLS

Oh! They’re back again – my big juicy meatballs. But this time with my favourite rigatoni pasta. Turkey, beef or pork meatballs will all work well with this sauce, so feel free to mix it up. CARB-RICH SERVES 1 200g dried rigatoni ½ tbsp coconut oil ½ red onion, finely chopped 250g ready-made beef meatballs 1 tbsp red wine or balsamic vinegar 200g tinned chopped tomatoes 1 tsp sugar 50g frozen peas handful of baby spinach leaves a few basil leaves, to serve (optional) ● Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Drop in the rigatoni and cook according to the packet instructions. ● Melt the coconut oil in a large frying pan over a medium-to-high heat. Add the onion and fry, stirring regularly, for 1 minute before tumbling in the meatballs. Fry the ingredients together, stirring every now and then, for about 2 minutes, by which time the meatballs should be starting to colour. ● Pour in the vinegar and the chopped tomatoes, along with about 75ml of water, and sprinkle in the sugar. Place a lid on the pan (if you don’t have a lid then cover with a large plate), bring the whole lot to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes, by which time the meatballs should be cooked through. ● About 2 minutes before the pasta is ready, drop the frozen peas into the saucepan. Bring the water back up to the boil and then drain in a colander. Leave in the colander until you’re ready to serve. ● Check that the meatballs are cooked by cutting into one to make sure there are no raw pink bits left, then stir through the spinach, allowing it to wilt in the residual heat. Chuck the drained pasta and peas into the meatball sauce, mix everything together and serve with a scattering of basil leaves, if using. ➤