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2 tablespoons vegetable oil (for cooking the meatballs)

Sauce

Two 8-ounce cans tomato sauce

3 tablespoons light brown sugar

1½ tablespoons cider vinegar, or to taste

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 large garlic clove, finely chopped

½ teaspoon salt, or to taste

¼ to ½ teaspoon hot red pepper sauce (depending on how “hot” you like things)

1. For the meatballs: Place all but the vegetable oil in a large bowl and, using your hands, mix thoroughly. Shape into 1-to 1¼-inch balls, arrange on a foil-lined large, rimmed baking sheet, and set uncovered in the refrigerator. Chill for 3 to 4 hours. This is to firm up the meatballs so they’re easier to cook.

2. When ready to proceed, heat the vegetable oil in a large, heavy skillet over moderately high heat for 2 minutes or until ripples appear in the oil on the skillet bottom. Add half the meatballs and cook, shaking the skillet often, for 3 to 5 minutes or until uniformly brown. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the browned meatballs to a large, shallow pan and reserve. Brown the remaining meatballs the same way and add to the first batch.

3. For the sauce: Drain all drippings from the skillet, add all sauce ingredients, and whisk to combine. Set over moderate heat and bring to a boil, whisking often. Taste the sauce for vinegar and salt and adjust as needed.

4. Return the browned meatballs to the skillet, pushing them down into the sauce. Adjust the heat so the sauce bubbles gently, cover, and cook for 20 minutes, stirring once or twice, or just until the meatballs are cooked through.

5. Transfer all to a large chafing dish or attractive heatproof bowl and serve with cocktails. Put out a container of party toothpicks and colorful cocktail napkins.

NATCHITOCHES MEAT PIES

MAKES ABOUT 22 APPETIZERS

Natchitoches (pronounced NACK-uh-tish) in northwestern Louisiana is famous for two things: Steel Magnolias, which was filmed there in 1988, and spicy meat pies that predate the Civil War. The latter are what drew me to Nachitoches while on assignment for Gourmet, but the former was the talk of this nearly-300-year-old town. To orient myself, I hopped a tour bus only to learn that sites of historic significance mattered less than the various movie venues, less even than the homes rented to accommodate the stars during the shoot. So what I heard was “In the movie, this was Shelby’s home (the Julia Roberts character).”…“This is the church where Shelby’s wedding was filmed.”…“This is where Julia Roberts lived while making the movie.”…“This is where Dolly Parton stayed…Sally Field…Shirley MacLaine…” (Since my visit nearly ten years ago, I trust that Natchitoches’s long and colorful history has regained pride of place.) To taste the town’s famous meat pies, I headed straight to Lasyone’s Meat Pie Kitchen on Second Street (yes, some of the movie folk did stop by). Here I learned that fried meat pies were originally out-the-backdoor or street food sold by the few who knew how to make them. I won’t pretend they’re easy. The local recipes I picked up were vague and faulty: too much flour in the filling, too much lard in the pastry. Even with major adjustments the pastry was so short the pies fell apart when fried in deep fat. What to do? Abandon tradition and bake the pies instead. They are equally delicious and a tad less caloric.

Pastry

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup firmly packed lard or vegetable shortening

3 tablespoons cold milk beaten with 1 large egg

Filling

¼ pound ground beef chuck

¼ pound ground pork

2 medium scallions, trimmed and coarsely chopped (include some green tops)

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

1/8 to ¼ teaspoon ground hot red pepper (cayenne)

1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon all-purpose flour

¼ cup water

1. For the pastry: Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Add the lard and using a pastry blender, cut in until the texture of coarse meal. Quickly fork in the milk-egg mixture and as soon as the pastry holds together, shape