The Golden Bachelor's Susan Nole shares her ‘secret' family meatball recipe

Susan made a splash on night one when she walked out of the limo and cheekily said to Gerry while gesturing to her shoes: “I am very comfortable with six inches.”

Ever since the hilarious 66-year-old hairstylist and homemaker has become a fan-favorite, with many hoping the Kris Jenner look alike (who got a shoutout from the media mogul at the Women Tell All) would become the first-ever Golden Bachelorette.

While it didn't work out for her, last week’s Women Tell All special featured an entire special segment about whether Susan’s silent but deadly gas was from her meatballs or from Edith Aguirre’s guacamole. Susan swears it was the guacamole, but some other contestants are convinced otherwise. 

READ MORE: Golden Bachelor's Kathy and Susan 'not giving up on love' after Gerry rejection

Whether or not the meatballs gave her a case of gas or not, the public have been eager to get their hands on the recipe.

Susan says she learned to cook at a young age from her nana who is from the Abruzzio region in Southern Italy. She said: “I was hanging on her apron strings wanting to learn. So since I was a little girl, I knew how to make them.”

The Philadelphia-based mother of three and grandmother of six said she was compelled to make the meatballs at the mansion to cure her homesickness.

“I said, ‘I want to make meatballs and sausage and gravy, so I need milk, beef, and pork.’ And [production] looked at me and said, ‘What is that?’ I go, 'Are you serious? I'm going to make meatballs.' They go, ‘Well, what do you mean? You mean meat?’ I said, ‘Veal, beef and pork.’ They looked at me like I had two heads.”

However, the production team tackled her grocery list, but not in one go. Underestimating just how much meat she needed to feed the pack, the producers had to make a second run.

It was worth it though, with Susan saying cooking is how Italians 'share love'. 

She says this recipe should serve 15 people with two meatballs, slightly larger than a golf ball, per person. While it takes a while to simmer, contestants and producers alike can attest that it is worth the wait.

Golden Bachelor Susan's meatball recipe

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground veal
• 1 lb ground pork
• 1 lb ground beef 
• OR 3 lbs meatloaf mix
• 1 egg per pound of meat
• Salt, to taste (Susan recommends cupping your hand and filling the well in the center with salt)
• Pepper, to taste
• 1 clove fresh garlic or garlic powder
• 3-4 shakes of dried chopped basil leaves
• ¼ to ½ cup of Locatelli cheese or grated parmesan cheese
• Seasoned breadcrumbs (Susan says to add the breadcrumbs slowly and intuititvely to keep the meat moist)

Method

For the meatballs

1. Combine veal, beef and pork in a large bowl, then add the egg, breadcrumbs, cheese, and chopped garlic. Mix well with your hands.

2. Sprinkle the mixture with salt, pepper, and basil flakes. Then shape into balls slightly bigger than a golf ball but smaller than a tennis ball.

3. Preheat a cast-iron skillet with about one knuckle worth of oil (enough to come about ¼ of the way up the side of the meatballs).

4. If you simply fry the meatballs, cook until browned and cooked through, which should take about 5 to 6 minutes on each side.

5. If you finish cooking them in the sauce, prepare the pan as above, and brown meatballs for a little longer to make a nice crust, which should take 1 to 2 minutes on each side. Then transfer them to the pan with the gravy and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally for 3-4 hours.

For the gravy

1. Place a few cloves of chopped garlic in enough oil just to cover the bottom of a large pot, and sauté over medium heat until fragrant. Add a pinch of salt and pepper.

2. Before the garlic begins to brown, add the meat (pork rib, pork bone or 1 pound of Italian sausage), and cook it until browned.

3. Add 1 large can (about 15 oz.) of crushed tomatoes and 1 large can of puree, or two cans of crushed tomatoes for thicker sauce. Then add meatballs and two small cans of tomato paste.

5. Cover and simmer stirring occasionally. She says she usually cooks it for three or four hours, and sometimes adds a little red wine if I have all day to simmer the gravy.