Hawaiian Meatballs a la Russell

So you may have had these under the name Waikiki meatballs from Betty Crocker, which is where I first had them thanks to my mom, but Ryan and I of course did our thing again and tadaa! Hawaiian Meatballs a la Russell! (This feeds a lot by the way)



Sauce:
6 TBS. Cornstarch
1 1/2 C Brown Sugar (go for the dark...it's better)
2 cans (20 oz.) Chunk Pineapple in JUICE (not syrup or your in for a sugar overload!!!)
*be prepared to drain the pineapple while KEEPING the juice
1 C vinegar
3 TBS. Soy Sauce

Meatballs:
2 1/2 - 3 Lbs Ground Beef or Turkey
1 C cracker crumbs (seasoned bread crumbs work well)
2/3 c minced onion
2 eggs
3 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/3 C milk

How to make it mouth-wateringly wonderful:

Begin with the sauce by thoroughly mixing the corn starch and brown sugar. Stir in the reserved Pineapple juice, vinegar, and soy sauce until smooth. Pour into medium sauce pan, cook over medium until sauce thickens and boils. Allow to boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and pour into crock pot (set on low or warm). Add Pineapple to sauce and let warm through.

Next mix all ingredients for the meatballs in medium to large bowl (a potato masher works great if you want to avoid the mess). Shape into balls about 1.5 inches in diameter. Cook in large skillet in olive oil over medium heat until done. Add finished meatballs to the crock pot (may need to do this in two batches if your skillet isn't big enough). Let all heat through.

Serve warm over rice! Enjoy!!!

Susan's Kickin' Habanero Salsa & Susan's Pineapple Salsa

Another late night craving led to another late night fiesta-in-our-mouths! We found that jalapeno peppers just weren't cutting it anymore, and that the flavor in a habanero pepper is a perfect change. Ryan, being the Texan in the relationship, likes his salsa with some kick. Susan's Michigan tastebuds are working overtime and adjusting, but they still prefer the milder Pineapple version more. Thank you to Kellie Russell, Ryan's mom for turning us onto habanero with our memorable cream-corn experience last Christmas!

8 roma tomatoes
1/2 medium to large sweet onion
3 limes
1/4 to 1/3 bunch of fresh cilantro
1 small to medium habanero pepper

For Susan's Kickin' Habanero salsa:

Chop up all ingredients to desired size for chunky salsa, and mix well. For finer salsa, puree inredients in a blender. Be sure that when cuttung the habanero you cover your hands with plastic bags or the like to avoid touching the juice. It will definitely burn if you don't. Dice the habanero pepper well so that no one bite has a large chunk of the pepper.

For Susan's Pineapple Salsa:

All ingredients listed above
1 can crushed pineapple in it's own juice
1 tablespoon brown sugar

Prepare salsa as normal. Mix 1 part salsa with 1 part crushed pineapple. Add sugar to sweeten a little.


Enjoy!