Sausage & Parmesan Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

I have no idea where this recipe came from, I've made it forever, my kids always loved it, and it was a great meal to have after skiing today:

Meatballs (this recipe is doubled, because my family devours these like starving carnivores).

2 lbs. Sausage (your choice: Italian, Jimmy Dean, Hot, Medium, Regular, Sage)
1 cup crushed cracker crumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
1/2 cup chopped parsley
2 eggs

Shape into meatballs; these were about 1 1/2 inch diameter. Bake 30 minutes in 400 degree oven. Back when the kids were growing up, I just plunked them into the sauce and cooked them for 30 minutes, but baking them makes the dish less greasy so, presumably, healthier.





Sauce
1 28 oz.can tomato sauce
1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
2-3 Tablespoons Chili Powder (to taste-I'm still trying to figure out ways to use up several jars of Chili Powder-previous buzz!)
1/2 cup chopped Parsley
Lotsa minced garlic (the recipe calls for 1 clove-why bother? I used 4, because garlic is life)

1 lb. your choice of Pasta, cooked al dente.

Apparently I haven't bought pasta on sale for a while, because all I had in the cupboard was whole wheat thin spaghetti. No penne, no farfalle. But it worked, smelled, tasted, and ate the same.

Brian, the smiling omnivore piles on the parmesan: