On-the-Run Dinners

There are some nights when real life intrudes on dinner.  The no-food event we were attending started at 7 pm, and it was an hour’s drive away.  Normally we eat around 7 pm. Waiting till we got home at 10 pm for dinner was out of the question.  We would have to eat in the car.

I have several go-to one-dish meals that I can make so we don’t starve to death.  One is a Prosciutto Sandwich.  Another is a simple Homemade Egg Salad Sandwich. In fact, any sandwich will do if you’re desperate.

I like my dinners to be more filling than lunches, so I decided to focus on trying to make a Meatball Sandwich.  Of course you need meatballs. Here is an easy recipe to follow:  When I Learned to Love Spaghetti and Meatballs.

Making meatballs yourself means having the ingredients available.  Or, as I do, you could keep a bag of meatballs in the freezer.  I also freeze French bread--my go-to choice for hearty sandwiches like this one. 

Meatball Sandwiches – serves 2 

2 6-inch chunks French bread, sliced in half but still hinged together
2 cups marinara sauce
8 medium-size (1- 1 ½ inch) meatballs, fully cooked
2 teaspoons Parmesan cheese (optional) 

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.  Put the chunks of bread on a middle oven rack and bake for 5 minutes so that they will get hot.  Remove from the oven and set aside. 

While the bread is heating, heat the marinara sauce in a small pot.  When hot, add the meatballs and cook for several minutes, or until they are hot. 

Place 4 meatballs into each of the two chunks of bread and spoon the marinara sauce over the meatballs.  Sprinkle each sandwich with 1 teaspoon Parmesan cheese, if using, and serve at once, with napkins.

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