Instructions

1. First make the soffritto, by finely chopping the celery, onion, garlic and carrot, then sweating these in olive oil for 10-15 minutes, until very soft. Add the oregano, salt & pepper and tomatoes, then pour in the water using the tin, add the stock cube and cook for another 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile fry, air-fry or grill the meatballs. If you’re serving the meatballs with pasta, cook some according to the packet instructions. Put the meatballs on a plate, lined with paper kitchen towel. Drain the pasta and keep warm.
3. When the tomato sauce is nice and thick, add a spoonful of balsamic vinegar and fresh herbs of your choice.
4. Using a hand-held blender, purée the tomato stew until it becomes a creamy sauce. If it’s too thick, add some water or stock.
5. Cut the asparagus into 3 cm pieces and add to the sauce.
6. Add the meatballs and cook for 3-5 minutes, until the asparagus is tender.
7. Serve warm with the pasta (or rice, bread bulgur wheat etc)