Alex Guarnaschelli makes meatball sandwiches on homemade garlic bread

Iron Chef, television personality and best-selling cookbook author Alex Guarnaschelli is stopping by the TODAY kitchen to share two of her favorite comforting Italian recipes. She shows us how to make saucy meatballs with plenty of Parmesan cheese and buttery, crunchy garlic bread for a crowd-pleasing hero sandwich.

Alex Guarnaschelli's Classic Beef Meatballs and Sauce by Alex Guarnaschelli

This recipe is a complete throwback to childhood for me. The ingredients are so straightforward. Does it make me "un chefy" to admit how much I enjoy a simple dish of meatballs, sauce and cheese? Serve with a loaf of crusty bread for dunking, pasta or a simple salad. These make a great dinner and then are so tasty as a leftovers snack or lunch the next day. You can also make a great "hero" sandwich with these nestled between some homemade garlic bread. Serve with a super vinegary iceberg salad (using red wine vinegar in the dressing) with some pitted black olives, roasted peppers and chopped celery for some pizzeria nostalgia. It's a real crowd pleaser and a recipe that feels so satisfying to master as part of your classic repertoire of go-to dishes.

Alex Guarnaschelli's Spicy, Buttery Garlic Bread by Alex Guarnaschelli

This can make a salad feel like a meal, it makes Italian-American night complete, it creates the pizzeria vibes at home and it's fun to make. Add some chili flakes to make it spicy. Add some shallots to the garlic for variety. Add mozzarella slices to make it like a giant, baked grilled cheese. The options are endless!

Sometimes, if I think of this in advance, I completely assemble and wrap this bread up and leave it overnight in the fridge. When I'm ready to make dinner, just toss it in the oven for 20 minutes or until it's really hot in the center. (Sometimes I make it when I'm at home with my daughter so we don't have to share with any guests!) This gets even better when you use this bread as the base for a meatball (or sausage and pepper hero) sandwich.

If you like those comforting family-friendly recipes, you should also try these:

Gnocchi Mac and Cheese by Alex Guarnaschelli

Ricotta-Stuffed Shells by Alex Guarnaschelli

This article was originally published on TODAY.com