I grew up not far from Philadelphia, and as a kid I had a number of relatives who regularly took me on the short, 30-minute trip there for sporting events—I had great seats with my dad for the 1960 NFL Championship game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers. I traveled there for meals, historical visits, and school outings of every type. I loved Philadelphia, but nothing about it was more important to me than the Italian meatball sandwich. 
     It was only after I began dating Barbara—we were both 15—that I learned there was a legitimate way to make a proper meatball sandwich. That recipe was almost sacred to her mother, for Barbara’s father had grown up not far from ‘Philly’ himself, and he was equally demanding about this local culinary treasure. Barbara’s mother had learned from her mother and, in turn, passed the recipe along to her daughter. During our first year of marriage, we typically enjoyed an Italian meatball sandwich once a week. It fit our budget well—we were students living in a nearby Garret—and it tasted delicious. Barbara graciously replicated the recipe for me to pass along after I mentioned it not long ago. It’s real simple, but like much in life, the ingredients are crucial:
 
1 pound lean Ground Beef
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
Grated Parmesan Cheese (use good Reggiano, just not too old)
Marinara sauce (buy it or make it, but use the best one you can find)
 
Preparation:
•  Add salt and pepper to the ground beef and combine using your hands.
•  Shape about 12 meatballs using your hands. (I like it if a few of them are flat.)
•  Sauté the meatballs in olive oil until they are completely browned on the outside. 
•  Add the meatballs to the warming marinara sauce and continue cooking until the sauce is hot and the meatballs are thoroughly cooked. The longer this step, the better the outcome. Six hours was not uncommon for Barbara’s mother.
•  Warm, and then very lightly toast a soft-sweet roll, slit down the center, with halves separated so they are still joined but each is able to lay almost flat.
•  Add the sauced meatballs to the roll, careful not to add too much sauce—you don’t want it to run out of the sandwich, just to cover it.
•  Sprinkle on some freshly grated Reggiano.
 
Stand back and admire your work. The single best wine for an Italian meatball sandwich is a Dolcetto. Il Palazzotto’s “Santa Lucia” is the work of someone who really knows their way around a grapevine, and I love the way it sticks to tradition.