Easy to make, with a rich and tasty enhanced tomato sauce, this is a rare all-round favourite. Serves four.
2 cans of good-quality tinned plum tomatoes
1 red or yellow pepper, or a mixture, roughly chopped
Half a medium onion, roughly chopped
A couple of pinches of dried oregano
500g sausagemeat
400-500g of pasta - tagliatelle, papardelle or spaghetti
Empty the contents of the tins of tomato into a medium pan
Add the chopped onion and pepper, and the oregano
Bring to a boil and simmer gently for around 45 minutes. Season to taste
With about 15 minutes to go, heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a wide non-stick frying pan
With clean damp hands, break off smallish chunks of the sausagemeat, squeeze and roll into balls between 2 and 3cm in diameter - you're aiming to make a number roughly divisible by four, to avoid arguments
As you go, place the balls in the hot oil, shaking the pan from time to time
Continue to fry all the balls until well browned, shaking occasionally or turning with a spatula
Meanwhile, tip everything in the sauce pan into a blender and whizz to a smooth sauce
Once the meatballs are fully browned, tip the blended sauce into the frying pan along with the meatballs
Keep on a low simmer whilst you cook the pasta. When the pasta is nearly ready, remove the balls from the sauce and set aside in a bowl. Drain the pasta when cooked, and then tip it into the sauce. Reserve some of the pasta water and add to the sauce if it seems a little too thick. Toss to mix the pasta and sauce, then serve in bowls, adding a quarter of the meatballs on top of each bowl (or as required). Note: although apparently disapproved of, you might find it easier adding the sauce to the drained pasta and mixing in the pasta pan.