A recipe and some reminiscing...

Is there a meal from your childhood that brings back great memories? Maybe your grandmother made amazingly moist cookies with just a touch of orange flavoring that made them melt in your mouth, or maybe your father made great french fries in a deep fryer that burst with crispy greasy goodness when you bit into them, or maybe your mom made a dinner that everyone got excited about when they heard she was making it for dinner that night. Well... all of those above-named foods were true for me when I was growing up, but the one meal my mom made that everyone got so excited about was called "Mushroom Meatballs." It may sound strange, but let me tell you... it was the one thing my brother and I could agree on when we were teenagers.
You see, every weeknight, at 6:30 sharp, my brother and I knew we were to be seated at the kitchen table and ready to eat dinner as a family. We would discuss the day's events, complain about teachers and schoolwork, and try our best to annoy and irritate each other during the meal (come on... we were teenagers!). But when we knew mushroom meatballs were on the menu for the night, we were all (including my dad) so excited for dinner. No complaining was heard from these kiddos... and the same goes for my family today.
When I got married, my mom typed (yes, with a real typewriter) up some of her favorite family recipes and gave them to me in a wooden recipe box (thanks so much mom - I think of you every time I open that recipe box!). The best thing about those recipes, is that she typed them on neon green notecards, so I can always find them immediately when shuffling through my recipes.
So, I wanted to share her famous recipe for Mushroom Meatballs for those of you who are always looking for an easy crock-pot meal for those busy weeknights. It's a keeper and let me tell ya... you can't screw this thing up - it's delish!
P.S. Shhh... please don't tell my husband that it's really called "Mushroom Meatballs" because I've called them "Crock-pot Meatballs" for years now because he doesn't like mushrooms, but he loves this recipe! If you have a mushroom-hater in your family, just change the name to crock-pot meatballs and they'll never know. It can be our little secret. ;)

Okay, here's the original recipe card from my mom...notice the old-school typeface and the neon card? Love it!

And here are the simple ingredients:

 Here is what the meatballs look like once you mix the meat with your hands and place them in a pan on the stovetop:
 

Then you brown them until the house smells like an Italian restaurant; and then place them in your Crock-pot:

 Add the mushroom soup mixture on top so the meatballs are swimming happily and ready to get all moist and fork-tender:

 Cover and cook on low all day... and Voila! You have delicious Crock-pot Meatballs:

My mom always served the meatballs over egg noodles with lots of the sauce and then bread and a veggie... why mess with success...

Payton loves em, Brian loves em, even Parker ate them tonight. I hope you'll copy the recipe below by clicking on the play button, or click here for a printable version and enjoy this meal with your family and friends. Thanks mom for being such a good cook and passing along some great "keepers!" :)

What are some of your favorite recipes? I'd love to hear about them! 

This free recipe card design made with Smilebox