From Lady and the Tramp · 1955 · Reconstructed
Spaghetti & Meatballs
Serve when
Serve one big shared plate as Tony strikes up 'Bella Notte' — and let two people find the same strand of spaghetti.
In the movie
Theatrical
- 00:46:23 Behind Tony's restaurant, on a candlelit table set for two dogs: a shared plate of spaghetti and meatballs, the accordion plays 'Bella Notte', and the most famous kiss in animation happens over a single shared noodle.
Tony and Joe don't just feed two dogs — they set a table, light a candle, and serenade them, and cinema got its most copied romantic dinner. The nose-push of the last meatball is the punchline; the shared strand is the kiss. Seventy years on, "spaghetti like Lady and the Tramp" needs no further explanation.
Ingredients
- For the meatballs:
- For the sauce:
Method
- Mix the meatball ingredients gently and roll into balls a little smaller than a golf ball — Tony's are generous but they have to balance on spaghetti.
- Brown the meatballs in olive oil on all sides; set aside.
- In the same pot, soften the onion and garlic, add the tomatoes and basil, and simmer 15 minutes. Return the meatballs and simmer 20 more, until they're cooked through to 160°F at the center.
- Cook the spaghetti al dente, toss with sauce, and pile onto one platter — this dish is constitutionally incapable of being served on two plates.
- Top with meatballs and parmesan. Dim the lights. Someone hum.