Feeling The Cold? Here's How Meatballs Can Help.

So yesterday was cold in New York City. Like, crazy cold. Maybe it's because I haven't finished gaining my winter fat cap yet, but I had a chill firmly planted in my bones that was somehow not alleviated by the extremely noisy and portal-to-hell hot pre-war radiator next to my bed. I made this French onion soup at a friend's place in Brooklyn — her landlord taped layers of green bubble wrap over her air conditioner in what I'm calling an aesthetic crime whether or not it keeps the draft out.

Anyway, I lugged a bunch of French onion soup ingredients down there, cold-cold-cold, wind keeps blowing my hood off, why do you live 6 blocks from the 2/3 train, cold.

(Summer Jess: Ahh, what delightful weather we're having. Let's leisurely stroll along the promenade, I simply couldn't bear to be indoors right now! ::espadrille jig::)

I didn't warm up from the journey until after the onions were caramelized and the whole business was bubbling, but then things were solid until I went out there again to go home. Cold! Very cold out there! I got home and was seized with the urge to cook something hot and hearty again, even though I'd just made a massive pot of roasted beef shank and caramelized onion soup covered with toasted bread and crispy melted cheese, basically the hottest, heartiest thing ever. So at 11 last night while freezing gusts rattled the windows, I made about 40 meatballs because I'd rather hang out by the stove than that scary old radiator. 20 were traditional Swedish, 2o were veal and Italian sausage in a simple tomato-basil sauce. Then I froze them (barely ironically) and now I have a ton of meatballs! MECs for everyone!

I used to write about pasta salad and watermelon. What the hell happened that I'm making roasted beef bone stock the second the sun goes down at 4 p.m.? Why lose sleep to make meatballs? I'll tell you the actual truth, which I basically never do: I really like to cook when it's super-cold, like window-rattling, puddle-freezing, wear-a-fur-thing-on-your-head cold. So to get the chill out of your bones, I recommend you start with meatballs today and move on to the turkey carcass first thing Friday morning.

More lunch for a cold day on Food Republic: