Kitchen Adventures || Hidden Veggie Meatballs
I am usually pretty good about getting my veggies in, but I know plenty of folks who need a little more coaxing. Even if you do love vegetables, sometimes it’s nice to just have another option to get a little more in. What’s great about this recipe is not only do you get the extra veggies in, they actually replace some of the stuff that we should be eating less of.
I was craving spaghetti and meatballs so this week I decided to do a version with as many veggies as possible. I’ll share my red sauce recipe another time, but I made my red sauce, subbed spaghetti squash for the pasta, and then whipped up a big batch of these meatballs.
By subbing the riced cauliflower in place of bread crumbs, these turkey meatballs stay very moist and the cauliflower adds a little extra pop of flavor! The carrots also add a nice little speckle of color throughout.
These also freeze well so if you don’t think you’ll go through the whole batch, portion some out into airtight freezer bags and then you’ll have individual portions that you can grab and reheat whenever you like!
INGREDIENTS
2 lbs lean ground turkey
2 carrots grated VERY fine (or use a food processor to chop them up pretty fine)
1 – 1.5 cup(s) cauliflower – riced (use a food processor to chop finely)
2 eggs
2 TBSP Italian Seasoning
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp paprika
Salt & pepper to your liking
DIRECTIONS
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. In a small bowl, combine the spices and mix well. If you haven’t yet, peel and grate the carrots with a very fine grater and toss the cauliflower in food processor and pulse until finely chopped.
(Start with a cup of riced cauliflower – add more if needed) *
In a large bowl, combine the meat, carrots and cauliflower and mix lightly until combined. Try not to over mix because that tends to lead to tougher meatballs (same for meatloaf).
Add in the seasoning mixture and eggs and finish combining making gentle folds until everything is incorporated.
Line a baking sheet with foil and spray or coat lightly with olive oil. If you want to keep your sizing consistent you can use an ice cream scoop or a tablespoon to scoop out and form your meatballs. I usually end up with about 20 golf ball sized meat balls.
Place in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes or until they start to turn golden brown. Then, serve them up however you like!