Meatball

We've lightened traditional meatballs with veal and added Mediterranean accents to achieve a bright, springtime flavor. Chicken broth and matzo meal take the place of milk and bread crumbs to keep the meatballs exceptionally tender.

Parmigiano-Reggiano enriches canned broth for a quick, hot, and truly delicious meal in a bowl.

Polly Tafrate of South Salem, New York, writes: "I've taken dozens of cooking classes over the years, but some of my best lessons in the kitchen have come from my husband's family. His sister and his mother have shared many delicious recipes with me, including this one."

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

"For as long as I can remember, every Christmas Eve I've hosted an open house with a Mexican buffet," writes Jill Cole of Fallbrook, California. "Any suggestion of varying the meal is met with cries of protest from family and friends. I set out guacamole, salsa, homemade tamales, and what has become my famous albóndigas soup." Be sure to put out hot sauce for those who like extra heat.

These rice-coated meatballs, commonly referred to as zhen zhu, meaning "pearls" in Chinese, are often prepared at home in New York City's Chinatown. Steaming them on lettuce leaves helps prevent them from sticking to the steamer rack. They are traditionally made with sticky rice (sometimes called sweet rice), but we've used long-grain rice, which is easier to find.

A different, easy way to enjoy ground beef.

Voli are marbles, the multicolored little balls that were so popular with kids during my childhood. But unlike the glass versions, which were quite expensive, the ones we used to play with were made of clay and colored in various bright, glossy shades. They were fragile, and their glaze would crack, revealing their dark red insides, similar in color to these delicious meatballs with bulgur. This recipe comes from the island of Rhodes, and bulgur is probably the grain originally used. Later, in the stewed meatballs of the mainland, it was replaced by rice.

"I've always loved to cook," writes Mary Gareffa of East Longmeadow, Massachusetts, "and though at eighty-nine I'm slowing down, I still love it. My grandfather and my father were both cooks in a monastery in Reggio Calabria, Italy, before they moved to this country, and luckily for me, my father was my cooking teacher. He showed me how to make the tomato-and-sausage sauce for the pasta. When my son was young, he used to tease me for standing over the pot of sauce, stirring and simmering it slowly, but that's the way my father showed me. A sauce is like a baby; you have to be gentle with it. And I know I must be doing something right, because my grandson, Jason, called me just last week to get the recipe." Tender meatballs — bound with bread softened in milk — in a good old-fashioned Tomato-Sausage sauce.

A classic sandwich that is guaranteed to satisfy, whether served as a weekend lunch or an easy weeknight supper.

You can use purchased sauce here, your own homemade or the versatile This is terrific over pasta.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. This new version of spaghetti and meatballs still goes well with the usual accompaniments: green salad, crusty garlic bread and some red wine. End with spumoni ice cream.

If you love spaghetti and meatballs, then you'll love this upmarket rendition featuring perciatelli-long, hollow pasta. The noodles are topped with a rich tomato and porcini mushroom sauce, and meatballs made with ground veal, Italian sausage and more porcini. Start things off with an antipasto platter of olive, assorted marinated vegetables and cured meats. Offer breadsticks alongside, and pour a full-bodied Chianti.

(Zucchini Meatballs) This dish, like stuffed artichokes and many others of this kind, is one of the many ingredients that go into a couscous. However, like the others, it is so tasty and delightful that it can be served as a main dish, and nobody will miss the couscous.