Name: Meatball Sliders
Cook time: 1 1/4 hr
Total time: 1 1/2 hr
Yield: Makes 20 small sandwiches
Ingredients: 2 (28-ounce) cans whole tomatoes in juice; 1/4 cup olive oil; 1 medium onion, finely chopped; 5 garlic cloves, minced; 1 teaspoon sugar; 1 Turkish or 1/2 California bay leaf; 3 cups coarse fresh bread crumbs (6 slices firm white sandwich bread); 2/3 cup whole milk; 1 pound ground pork; 1 pound ground beef chuck (not lean); 4 garlic cloves, minced; 1 1/2 cups grated Pecorino Romano (1/4 pound); 2 large eggs, lightly beaten; 1/2 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley; 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano; 2 cups vegetable oil; 20 small (2-inch) soft buns or rolls, split

Photo by Roland Bello

Food editor Gina Marie Miraglia Eriquez often cooks for hordes of children, including her three-year-old son, Alex, and she knows that meatballs are always an easy sell. Inspired by the tiny meatball sandwiches served at New York City's Little Owl restaurant, she came up with these kid-size treats that can be eaten with one hand (leaving the other one free to wreak kid-size havoc).

Recipe notes

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