Beef Balls in Mushroom Sauce

My daughters love anything in mushroom sauce --- chicken, pork, beef, fish, vegetables...whatever it is, they'll definitely be pleased! I, on the other hand, love to see them finish everything on their plate, so cooking dishes with mushroom sauce is one thing I enjoy doing!  

This Beef Balls in Mushroom Sauce is one of my girls' favorite. You can always see big smiles on their faces whenever they see me preparing this. And having this on the dinner table makes their eyes glow with excitement! They just love it!

As for me, I love the ease of preparation that goes with this dish. You can use store bought frozen meatballs, or you can make, cook and freeze the meatballs ahead of time for an extra-easy meal. (I prefer the latter). Check it out and see for yourself!

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Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 medium-sized red onion, minced
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 eggs, beaten
• ½ cup plain bread crumbs
• 1 tsp Herbs de Provence (for those who aren't familiar with this, it's a combination of basil, marjoram, thyme, sage, savory & rosemary - dried herbs typical of Provence)
• 1 Tbsp Worcestershire
• 3 Tbsp light olive oil
• ½ yellow onion, sliced
• ½ cup sliced fresh or canned mushrooms (I prefer using fresh ones but for this, I used canned simply because I didn't have fresh mushrooms on hand)
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch dissolved in 2 Tbsp water (This is optional. Just do this if you want a thicker sauce)
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• 1 cup milk
• salt and pepper

Procedure:

1. In a bowl combine ground beef, minced onion, garlic, bread crumbs, egg, Herbs de Provence, Worcestershire, 1 tsp salt and ¼ tsp black pepper. Mix until well combined. Roll into 1 inch diameter balls.

2. In a large skillet over medium heat, fry meatballs in olive oil until brown. Remove from pan and set aside. 

3. Add sliced onion and mushrooms to the pan. Cook until onions are almost translucent or until mushrooms are cooked if you are using fresh mushrooms.

4. Pour milk and cream of mushroom soup. Bring to a boil. Add salt and pepper to suit your taste. Reduce heat to low. 
5. Add dissolved cornstarch. Stir until well blended with sauce. (optional)

5. Return meatballs to the pan. Spoon sauce over the meatballs and simmer for 10 minutes.

6. Remove from heat. Serve hot with rice or pasta.  My girls also love this over mashed potatoes!