You have not lived until you've had these...

Hamballs! I thought they sounded sick too, until the first time they touched my lips.  I was changed forever.  I decided to marry my husband because his mother is an excellent cook (and maybe because he's handsome, loving, kind, funny, generous, mostly patient, mostly. And because he does an excellent job holding down the loveseat in our living room...ok, maybe not that last part, but I do like to tease him!  Love you BJS!). 

It was not until over a year after we were married that she (my mother-in-law, and I say that with the utmost love and respect, this woman is amazing, really) forked over the recipe...I begged and begged for this, and I DO NOT beg. I think she thought she'd have a better chance seeing her son if she held on to that recipe, knowing we had to come over if I was going to get my hamball fix. Actually, if you know her, this is completely untrue, she doesn't have a mean or self-serving bone in her body.  I'm not sure I know anyone more selfless than she is...that is self-less, not selfish, meaning she would do anything for anyone at anytime, no matter how inconvenient it may be for her.  She later told me, after she realized just how serious the situation was, that she simply forgot and didn't realize how dire a need it really was.

There are a number of ingredients I do not like by themselves in 'hamballs', but together, they perform a Riverdance in your mouth and you will never be the same.  I have yet to meet a person who does not like this recipe.  If you are out there-I don't care to know about you...because you're lying, you simply must be. Please and thank you.

Here goes...

First, you must have the correct apron (this is what real semi-country wives do).  Mine, in all it's glory, was a Christmas gift from my loving brothers a few years back...They think they are hilarious.  The girls can't read well enough to know what it says...yet.   Until that day, I will wear it proudly.  I love my brothers.  They think I'm awnry (out here they say AWN-ree, in Michigan, we say OR-NA-ree, three syllables. Out here, they are wrong.) but they will both have soft spots in my heart (well until Peep starts talking anyway).

Next, you need the ingredients:

Now you divide in to two separate steps, the hamball and the sauce.  Please note, you do NOT want to pass-up this sauce.  Brady puts it on top of the cottage cheese that tops his homemade mashed potatoes-what? Like putting cottage cheese directly on top of your mashed potatoes is weird?  You're weird!  You probably don't eat BBQ chips with 4% fat cottage cheese as 'dip' either, do you?  Hmmm...

First is the meat: ground beef and 'hamloaf' from Fareway. I like to think of 'hamloaf' as mystery meat, it may not be much on it's own, but it is essential to making the hamball correctly.

Then you add the chopped onions (and this is where most people would add garlic, but we're not even going to discuss what garlic does to my stomach. All you need to know is that I DO NOT include it in my hamballs, for my own and my family's safety)

You add some spices and some liquid smoke (please note:  I HATE liquid smoke, when I was pregnant, the mere smell of smoke flavor was enough to make me vomit).  I still don't like liquid smoke, but again, many things I don't like, create something I LOVE.

Then you mush it all together (after you take off any rings of course-it's frowned upon to have mystery mean smooshed in your wedding rings.  And after a while, quite frankly, it starts to smell.)

After the meat is all prepared, it is time to concoct the magical sauce that dances in your mouth.  This sauce is highly coveted around these parts.  But it's only true hamball sauce (and can only be spread on cottage cheese on top of mashed potatoes) if it has been cooked in/with the hamballs, otherwise, it's devoid of it's true flavor.  Trust me on this one.

So you mix all the sauce ingredients, generously pour this sauce over the hamballs and bake @ 350 in a pre-heated oven for 1 hour.  I usually make 3-4 trays and freeze a couple for those nights that you have nothing planned and everybody is hungry.  Then all you have to do is heat them in the oven.

Ham Balls:

3# prepared ham loaf
1# ground beef
1.5 c fine cracker crumbs (I use graham crackers)
2 eggs
2 T onion
1/2 c milk
1/2 c liquid smoke

Sauce Mix
2 cans tomato soup
2 c brown sugar
1/4 c vinegar
2 tsp mustard

Mix well, all the hamball ingredients, make in to 2.5 in balls-mine usually tend to be bigger... place in pans as desired.  Mix all sauce mix ingredients, pour it over the hamballs.  Bake @ 350 for 1 hour-you're suppose to turn once, but I don't.

You're Welcome. =)

Please don't call DHS, it was just a plastic hanger, no sharp pokey pieces...

Whatchoo lookin' at Willis?