Our homemade Rotini with Meatball Marinara is perfect for a quick weeknight dinner, to make ahead of time and bring to a friend, or for a big weekend gathering!
Combine all of the meatball ingredients and mix together until they are evenly distributed through the meat. Don't overmix.
Roll into balls that are about 1 inch in diameter.
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown the meatballs in batches. Once browned, remove from the pan.
It is okay if they aren't cooked all the way through. They'll cook more in the sauce.
Add olive oil and minced yellow onion to the same pan. Sauté for 4-5 minutes and add the garlic. Stir for a minute before adding the tomatoes, tomato puree, Italian seasoning blend, and salt (to taste, see notes.) Add the sugar, if using.
Bring the mixture up to a simmer over low to medium-low heat.
Simmer for 45 minutes until the sauce has cooked down some and the meatballs are fully cooked.
While the sauce is cooking, cook the noodles in a pot of well-salted water and cook according to package directions. Drain well, and toss with the meatball marinara.
Garnish with freshly grated parmesan and enjoy while hot!
Notes
* This is kind of an odd number of ounces. I use the Mutti tomato puree, which comes in 24.5-ounce jars. If you use a different brand, get close-ish to this amount of tomato puree, and you'll be good.** Start sparingly with the salt and increase as needed. How much salt you need depends on what type of tomatoes you use.