Homemade Spaghetti-O's & Meatballs

Uh-Oo, spaghetti-O's!  First introduced in 1965; Campbell Soup Company launched Franco-American, which manufactured those little O's.  Their goal was to offer a fast meal of pasta that could be eaten with a spoon, so kids could eat "neat" and mess free.  Pfff!  Do you know how many spaghetti-O's stains I had on my clothes as a child?....even before I had boobs!!  I was a messy eater; today, I still have my days.

Franco-American put countless hours into researching and producing this dinner-in-a-can. Now, fast forward almost 50 years, and we attempt to recreate this canned classic from scratch - a healthier homemade version.  We have come full circle, Spaghetti-O's......full.circle.

I was pretty sceptical when I was making this.  At first glance it's very similar to a tomato bisque:  saute onions, celery, carrots, and garlic - add crushed tomatoes & puree.  You then drop in the meatballs, then a cup of circular pasta - this is when the magic happens - it transforms into actual Spaghetti-O's!!

The meatballs are just ground beef and a few shots of prepared pesto.  Again, I was skeptical - this is not the meatball preparation I am familiar with...no egg, no breadcrumbs, etc.  That being said, it totally works.  If you wanted to make this a meatless meal, just skip the meatballs.  I would recommend stirring in a little of the pesto, it adds a lovely laying of flavor.

If you are looking for a new spin on the whole spaghetti & meatballs dinner; or if you want to make something fun for the kid-o's; OR if you just want to make this so you can be like - dude, I just make flippin' spaghetti-O's - this is a quick easy recipe to follow.

Originally this is an America's Test Kitchen Recipe, I found it via Tracy's Culinary Adventures.  I did deviate a little; I used crushed tomatoes instead of diced, I doubled the amount of ground beef for the meatballs, and I used anellini pasta instead of ditalini. 

For the recipe and directions on how to make this, CLICK HERE

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