18-36 Months: Eating with the Family - Your Sociable Child (part 2) - Chicken Meatballs with Tomato Sauce

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan and cook the onion, carrot, and apple until soft and golden. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute, then add the vinegar and 1 tsp of the sugar. Cook, stirring, until the vinegar has evaporated. Add the thyme. Spoon half of the onion mixture into a large bowl and set aside.

Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, ketchup, stock, and the remaining sugar to the onion mixture in the pan. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer gently for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, make the meatballs by adding the bread crumbs, apple juice, ground chicken, and Parmesan to the onion mixture in the bowl. Mix well and season. For a finer texture, chop everything together in a food processor. Dust your hands with flour and roll teaspoonfuls of the chicken mixture into 28 small meatballs that are the size of large cherry tomatoes.

Heat the oil in a large nonstick frying pan and brown the meatballs for about 1 minute on each side. Remove from the pan with a slotted spatula and drain on paper towels.

Add the meatballs to the sauce, cover, and simmer until cooked through, about 10 minutes. Divide the meatballs into portions and toss each very gently with a portion of cooked pasta. Cool slightly before serving with extra Parmesan.

The meatballs and sauce (without pasta) can be kept in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 2 days, or frozen in individual portions; thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Reheat in the microwave or a small pan, adding 1 tsp water per portion if necessary. Toss with pasta and serve as above.