Prepared sauce makes it a breeze to whip up a meal.
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Preheat your oven to 400°F. Begin by spreading the pasta sauce evenly across the bottom of a 2-quart baking dish. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the ground beef, breadcrumbs, eggs, half of the minced garlic, 2 teaspoons of thyme, along with salt and pepper to taste. Form the mixture into 24 meatballs.
Spray a 12-inch nonstick skillet with cooking spray and place it over medium heat. Cook the meatballs in batches, turning them occasionally until they are browned on all sides, which should take about 5 minutes for each batch. Once done, transfer the meatballs to a baking dish and layer them with pieces of pepper and tomatoes on top.
Bake the meatballs until they are cooked through and no longer pink in the center, which should take approximately 25 minutes. In the final 5 minutes of baking, add the mozzarella balls. Once done, sprinkle with the remaining garlic and a teaspoon of chopped thyme.
Suggestion: For effortless serving, utilize your slow cooker. After cooking, simply transfer the meatball mixture into the slow cooker, set it to low to maintain warmth, and place it on your buffet table. Provide individual plates along with toothpicks or cocktail forks, allowing your guests to serve themselves.
