This old-school Italian-American classic is the sort of food which was enjoyed by the characters in the movies “The Godfather” and “Goodfellas”, which is not surprising, since this recipe was adapted from the cookbook written by Henry Hill, the main character in “Goodfellas”. (The book was The Wise Guy Cookbook: My Favorite Recipes from My Life as a Goodfella to Cooking on the Run.)

1 recipe Basic Italian Tomato Sauce

1 recipe Italian Meatballs

½ lb. Italian sausage

1 Tbs. olive oil

Spaghetti

Grated parmesan for serving

First, start the Italian Tomato Sauce. While it is simmering, cook the sausage by heating up a frying pan, adding the olive oil, piercing the sausages in a few places with a sharp knife, and browning them over medium heat. When they are browned on all sides and nearly cooked through, remove them to a cutting board, and when cool, cut them into 1 inch pieces which are put into the simmering sauce. Make the meatballs, if you have not done so already, and add them to the sauce. Simmer the sauce with the sausage and meatballs for another 30 minutes and then serve with spaghetti and parmesan.