Steak 'N' Bacon Cheddar Meatballs

Costco never stops surprising me. For those of you that shop there Fridays through Sundays, they have those incredible seafood kiosks brimming with King Crab, lobster, fresh mussels, giant prawns and a complete array of fresh fish. It's quite impressive and there is always a long line of people waiting to take advantage of the great pricing.

When Becky and I were shopping there on Thursday, we found a little bit of heaven. They had taken one of those kiosks and converted it to a showcase of USDA Prime Beef...the cuts usually reserved for the finest restaurants in town. They had USDA Prime Rib Eyes, New York Strips, Porterhouse, Tomahawk Steaks and even USDA Prime Short Ribs!

Needless to say, we grabbed 3 steaks and grilled them up last night. Typical of Costco, the cuts of steak are large, so we always have leftover steak. And thanks to Julia Moskin, I have now found an incredible way to use that leftover steak to create a meal of my favorite comfort food, meatballs.

Besides cooked steak, Julia's recipe also calls for cooked bacon...8 ounces to be exact. So you can cook that up if you want, but I prefer a shortcut. Costco sells 20-ounce bags of cooked bacon bits for just $16.99. So instead of having to cook my bacon, I just dip a cup into the bag and I'm done. This recipe yields about 2 dozen meatballs, enough for 6 to 8 servings.


Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, minced
8 ounces cooked bacon crumbles
1 pound cooked steak, diced
1 pound 80% lean ground beef
6 ounces sharp cheddar, coarsely grated
3 large eggs, beaten
1/2 cup bread crumbs
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper


Directions

1. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium heat. Add onion and cook until it is translucent, about 10 minutes. Transfer onions to a plate and cool them in the refrigerator.
2. Heat oven to 450º. Use the remaining 2 tablespoon of oil to coat a 9" X 13" baking dish.
3. In a large bowl, combine bacon, steak, ground beef, onion, cheese, eggs, bread crumbs, salt and pepper. Mix lightly but thoroughly by hand.
4. Roll mixture into golf-ball size balls. Place the balls into the baking dish and roast for 20 minutes. Remove dish from oven, let the meatballs cool for 5 minutes, then serve.

Wine pairing: If we are talking steak, bacon and cheddar...you need to reach for an Oregon Pinot Noir. If you are lucky, one from the Willamette Valley.