Chase Center Tailgate Recipe: Meatball Sliders

A hearty dish perfect for game night!

Meatball Patties
• 1 ½ pounds ground beef
• 1 carrot
• 1 green pepper
• 1 small red onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped
• ½ teaspoon red chile flakes
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• 2 eggs
• ¼ cup cream
• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup of bread crumbs

• 1 can marinara sauce
• Sliced provolone
• Shaved parmesan

In a food processor, chop the carrot, onion, and pepper with the garlic and saute it until it becomes tender and remove from the heat and cool. In a large mixing bowl add all of the ingredients after the vegetable mix cools and mix everything together. Sear off a small bit to taste and make a final adjustment to the salt and pepper. Make 3 ounce patties and sear them off on both sides but only sear them, you’ll finish them in the oven. In a rectangular baking pan pour enough sauce to cover the bottom of the pan and then fill with the meatball patties and then top with the remaining sauce. Cover with foil and cook in an oven for 30-45 minutes at 350 degrees until the internal temperature of the patties is 165 degrees. Pull them out of the oven and top with the provolone slices and sprinkle with parmesan and put it back in the oven until the cheese is melted and gets some color.

Garlic Bread
• 1 loaf of Italian bread
• 1 stick of butter
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 2 Tablespoons of parsley, chopped
• Salt and pepper

First you’ll make a compound butter by chopping the garlic and then quickly sautéing it without getting any color on it. This will help get rid of the raw garlic bite but keeps the flavor. Let it cool and while it’s cooling take your butter and chop it into small pieces. Use the food processer and blend the garlic, butter, parsley, salt, and fresh pepper until smooth. Lay out some plastic wrap and put the butter in the center and roll it up with some wrap and form a cylinder by wrapping and rolling the butter. Chill the butter to store. When you are ready to make your garlic bread for the sliders, cut the Italian bread into some thick slices and spread some of the compound butter on top. Toast the bread under the broiler to toast it butter side up.

To Assemble
• Arugula
• Pickled red onion
• Shaved parmesan
• Extra vigin olive oil

To assemble the sliders, take one piece of garlic bread and top with a meatball covered in the marinera and melted cheese and top with a little salad made up of the arugula, pickled onions, and parmesan tossed with some olive oil and finish with another piece of the garlic bread.