Italian Meatballs

For the marinara sauce:
In a large pot, add olive oil and heat over a medium heat. Add chopped onion and sauté about 5 minutes. Then add minced garlic, continue to sauté about 3 minutes. Be careful not to burn the garlic.

Add crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, water, bay leaf, ground fennel, and salt and pepper to taste. Let simmer over low heat while you make the meatballs.

For the meatballs:
In a bowl, combine ground beef, whole wheat seasoned breadcrumbs, milk, Parmesan cheese, egg, egg whites, minced garlic, onion powder, salt and pepper to taste. Use your very clean hands to combine the ingredients until well blended and then form into small meatballs about 2 inches round.

Add the meatballs to the marinara sauce, cover and allow to simmer for about 15 minutes. Then gently stir, being careful not to break any meatballs. Allow to continue to simmer, stirring occassionally for about 45–60 minutes until meatballs are cooked through.

Remove the bay leaf before serving. Serve over pasta!