Meatballs with Tomato Sauce and Kale

One thick slice of white bread, crust removed
1/3 cup whole milk
3/4 pound ground beef
1/4 pound ground pork
1/4 pound ground veal
Half a sweet onion peeled and finely chopped
One egg
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons of olive oil
Handful fresh parsley chopped
Whole nutmeg

4 cloves of garlic peeled and chopped
Half a sweet onion peeled and chopped
2 cans whole tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried basil OR one stalk fresh basil

Two-three bunches of kale
3 cloves garlic peeled and chopped

Place the bread and milk into a small sauce pan and bring quickly to a boil.  Turn off the heat and smash the bread with a fork, creating a mush.  Allow to cool.  Combine the ground meats, onion, egg, Parmesan cheese, olive oil and parsley in a large bowl and mix together with your hands, careful not to over mix.  Mix in the bread mush and a tiny grating of whole nutmeg.  Season with salt and pepper.  Grease a cook sheet with olive oil.  Roll the meat mixture into meatball sized balls and place on the cookie sheet.  Bake in a 375 degree oven for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, make a tomato sauce.  Put a couple of tablespoons of olive oil into a large sauce pan and add the garlic and onion and cook over medium heat until the onion is translucent and the garlic is fragrant.  Add the canned tomatoes breaking them apart with a wooden spoon.  Stir in the basil (dried or fresh) and season with salt and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.  When the meatballs are done cooking add them to the sauce and continue to cook at a simmer for 20-30 more minutes.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Pull the leaves from the thick stems of the kale discarding the particularly tough stems, chopping the thinner ones.  Flash boil the kale (30 seconds) and quickly drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking.  Allow to fully drain.  Saute the chopped garlic in a large frying pan over medium heat.  Add the drained kale and toss in the garlicky oil for a few minutes.  Season with salt and pepper.

Put the kale into the bottom of a large serving bowl.  Top with the meatballs and tomato sauce.  Serve with passed grated Parmesan cheese.