I felt very lucky when PHILADELPHA Australia offered to send their brand new cheese product for me to test on my meatball sandwich. When I was growing up it was called a meatball sandwich and then when I went to university it was a grinder and then a meatball sub – but honestly, good bread, good meatballs, outstanding sauce and great cheese — and you can call it anything and I’ll sit at your table.
The new cheese is a combination of PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese and Tasty cheddar cheese. When I heard about it all I could think of was how wonderful it would be when it was melted. I wasn’t disappointed.
I started by making the meatballs. The ground beef wasn’t really fat enough for me but with the sauce, it turned out just fine. There are herbs, garlic, egg, onion, wet bread crumbs and panko along with the mince.
Every busy mother knows that meatballs can be done in the oven which saves heaps of time. I cooked mine at 180C/350F for about 15 minutes until they were nice and brown on the outside.
I used some sauce I had in the freezer and added some red capsicum. Why red? It was in the refrigerator. I would have preferred green but when you need a capsicum/pepper and red is all you have, red it is.
I had some nice crusty hot dog rolls and one baguette so I tried them both. On one of the hot dog rolls I sliced it and pinched out a bit of bread so I could add more sauce and on the baguette, I filled it as much as I thought I could get away with without the meatballs falling on the floor. I topped with the cheese and popped them in the oven. I took them out before the cheese was fully gooey because I prefer my meatball sandwiches without the cheese too brown. I like my sandwiches REALLY cheesy so I put some of the Grated PHILLY & Tasty cheese in a small bowl and microwaved it for a few seconds and poured it on top. My sandwich was just what I like to eat.
- 500 grams beef mince
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon oil
- 1 egg
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon sage
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- ¼ cup fresh bread crumbs soaked in 2 tablespoons of milk
- ¼ cup panko crumbs
- 2½ cups tomato sauce (your homemade favourite or in a jar from the supermarket)
- Bread rolls or baguette
- 1 cup Grated Philly & Tasty cheese
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F
- Sauté onion in a skillet with the oil. Sprinkle a pinch of salt over the onions to help them sweat and not turn brown. Cool.
- Add all ingredients except sauce to a large mixing bowl and combine with your fingers. Don't overwork and mixture should stay light.
- Form meatballs and place on a greased baking sheet. Try to make them all the same size so they will cook evenly.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until the meatballs are nicely browned.
- Place sauce in a saucepan on medium heat and bring to the boil and then turn down to a bare simmer.
- When the meatballs are done, add to the sauce.
- Cut the bread to make a pocket for and add the meatballs and sauce to the roll. Top with the grated cheese and place in the oven at 180C/350F for about 10 minutes or until the cheese begins to turn a golden brown on the edges.
- Serve hot.
Thanks to PHILADELPHIA Australia for sending two samples of their new Grated PHILLY and Tasty cheese for me to experiment with. Australians are able to buy this new grated cheese now from their local supermarket.
Perfect comfort food!
Dear Maureen, These are perfect. One of my favorites.
I hope you are feeling well.
Have a beautiful weekend. Catherine
Oh yeah! That’s what I’m talking about! these look delicious Maureen! I want to bite into one right now!
These sound perfect for a post-studio Saturday night! And the photos are epic!
Ah Maureen, you are such a temptress. How can anyone resist a meatball sandwich this good. Looks and sounds AH-MAY-ZING.
By the way, your blog is looking … well… extra orgasmic. Love the new look.
One of my favourite types of meals, pairing the contents of your freezer with freshly acquired items. The result … a great dish.
Definitely a favorite here too!! Looks absolutely delicious Maureen! I could eat tow of those please!! I’ll bring the bottle of wine! 🙂
I haven’t had a meatball sandwich/sub/grinder in ages and ages! A really good sandwich, and yours looks wonderful. I’ve never had one with cheese — I’ll have to give that a try. Thanks!
Oh yes, all I can say Maureen is – bring it on!
These meatball sandwiches look great Maureen! They’re one of my family’s favorites too 🙂
Oh Yummy!!! Best Meatball Sandwich I have ever seen……and soon to be tasted. Love how the cheese melts.
Maureen! What a great looking sandwich/roll. Can I confess I have never had a meatball sandwich! I sure would love to try your meatball roll; it looks and sounds amazing. I’ll look forward to trying that combo cheese xx
Looking yummy indeed Maureen! Great new product, I bet it will be a huge hit 🙂
Oh, I do like the sound of this cheese… I’ve not eaten a meatball sandwich, but yours would surely tempt me! ; )
What beautiful and amazing sandwichs!
Love these meatballs!:)
Your sandwiches belong at a gourmet deli 😀
They look SO wholesome and delicious!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
I love that photo of the cross section Maureen! I could sink my teeth right into this sandwich! 😀
G’day! I could go for one of these right now Maureen! Great photos and YUM!
Cheers! Joanne
Gorgeous sandwich Maureen……I could feast on it. My kids would love it.
Absolutely YES!!! These by any name would work well at my table too.
Mmmm meatball sandwiches. I would definately like one of those. what an interesting cheese Maureen. look forward to more ideas for using it.
What a great idea Maureen,
we used to called meatball as bakso here in Indonesia, i guess it would be great on sandwich too
Meatballs appear on our home menu regularly but I’ve never served them as sandwich. I’ll have to try it next time!
Wow, great to hear about the new combo cheese product! How’d I love to nibble on those cheesy meatballs!
~Do drop by and say hello 🙂
Gourmet Getaways
Great looking sandwich. I wonder if we’ve got that cheese here in Colorado. I’ll have to look.
That meatball sandwich is just oozing with temptation. I just want to have a big bite on that sandwich – delicious!
How I love coming here and finding such quintessential American recipes, Maureen. 🙂 It’s like a little taste of home and makes my heart happy. 🙂
Lovin’ the new layout Maureen!
Now as for this sandwich, it is right up my alley!!! …This is drool-worthy (I never cared for the way that sounds but in this case I couldn’t think of any other word!!)
xoxo
Such a nifty new product! My oldest is a huge meatball sub fan…so I’m glad to have a delicious recipe to test out on him. I have a feeling he’ll be smitten. As will I!!
Nevet tried meatballs this way and I am so excited to give these a try.
Never had meat balls this way and I am excited to give these a try.
Looks so delicious!! Love a good meatball sub on a weeknight!
Meatball subs are my son’s favorite too! I always have meatballs in the freezer for whenever his hunger sticks. I need to check out this cheese and try your recipe, sounds very good!
Meatball subs are pure comfort to me, I just love the way the cheese melts and how saucy those balls get (this is getting to be a hot post). Can’t wait to enjoy this!
Oh my, you’ve got me so hungry for a meatball sandwich. It’s funny, I never seem to grow tired of meatballs and a sandwich loaded with cheese would always be on my favorite list!
Its early morning here and looks like I want this for breakfast, look at that beauty 🙂
I know it as meatball sub, but whatever the name it is delicious and messy part of the fun. I too prefer to bake my meatballs, so much easier.
I haven’t had a meatball sandwich in more than 10 years! That is simply wrong, don’t you think? Growing up I loved it so much, comfort food all the way….
Love this meatball sandwich! And I’m heading to Philly next week to see my daughter, so I might have to find the real deal! However I don’t eat meat, but those look way too good! That cheese sounds good too, but I haven’t seen it in the stores!
Now this is the perfect meal for a room full of hungry teenage boys. Thanks for the inspiration Maureen!
i just love a good meatball sandwich. I am not a huge fan of just eating meatballs by themselves but loaded down on a bun- BRING IT! I love them and your recipe looks delicious
Beautiful!! Meatballs are so much better when they’re fresh and homemade, ten times more flavorful!
That looks so completely satisfying Maureen! Drooling over the melted cheese blend – this is brilliant! Bread, meatballs and marinara – yum!
Mmmm, hearty meal right here! The cheesier the better!
Yes, as a busy mom – meat balls (in my case turkey balls) sure do come in handy! My daughter would so love these balls with cheese in them – she is a cheese addict – also she likes to rub it in my face as I am lactose intolerant – gotta love her sense of humor – not sure where she gets it from! 😉
Yes, as a busy mom – meat balls (in my case turkey balls) sure do come in handy! My daughter would so love these balls with cheese in them – she is a cheese addict – also she likes to rub it in my face as I am lactose intolerant – gotta love her sense of humor – not sure where she gets it from! 😉
My two favourite cheeses blended together- next time I’ll look out for it at the supermarket. This cheese would go well in a ‘Cheese Steak’ sub sandwich!
These look delicious, Maureen! Love classic recipes, always the tastiest and most scrumptious!
Oh, yum! i haven’t had a meatball sandwich in a long time. Too long, for sure. I’m going to have to make a point of making them soon – yours look perfect!
I love meatball sub, one of my all time favorites!! Yours are drool worthy!!
Lady, you are killin’ me here. I am lusting after this sandwich. I love meatballs! I haven’t had a sandwich like this in years. I can fix that!!!! I love the glass of wine shimmering in the background—-red wine as it should be.
You my Girl!!!!
I have not had meatballs sandwiches for ages…your look fabulous, I love the melting cheese on it…yum!
Hope you are having a great week Maureen 😀
Yum! I can see why this is a family favorite!
I have to (shamefully) admit I have never tried a meatball sandwich before.. think I definitely have been missing out on something delicious. You have inspired me to recreate your recipe Maureen! These meatball subs look great!
Your photos are making so hungry! I can picture the lightly toasted bread and the juicy meatballs and sauce of of the dripping cheese. This would be such a hit at our house. Pinning it so I can make later.
I think so Philadelphia products are imported in India. I remember when they launched their first ads in the Austrian TV more then 10 years ago, somehow all neighbor ladies were hooked back then.
Can I have a bite of your meatball sandwich? =D
Yes, but you’ll have to come here to get it. 🙂
Meatballs make a regular appearance on our home menu but I haven’t tried them as a sandwich yet. I will have to buy the new Philly cheese – I think the small people would love it. Thanks for sharing!
I adore meatballs… and this sandwich has me craving it for breakfast. Mmm…. I wish I could just grab it off the screen. 🙂
Cheese dripping down the face of that meatball sandwich makes this sandwich irresistible! I haven’t had a meatball sandwich in ages and now I want one…this one actually!