Southwest Turkey Meatballs with Dipping Sauce

I made these for a get together with the neighbors.  I know I've mentioned that I don't like cilantro but I realize other do.  The recipe calls for adding cilantro to the meatballs and the sauce but I omitted it from the meatballs.  I also made 2 dipping sauces...one with cilantro and one with pesto.  These were a hit and would be a nice app to bring to any event.  I would recommend adding more jalapeno if you like a little pep to your food.  I couldn't taste it in mine and I kept a few seeds to hopefully add a little heat.  I found the recipe here.

Ingredients:
1-1/4 lb ground turkey (99% lean)
1 jalapeno, seeds removed if you don't like too much heat
2 cloves garlic
1/4 c chopped cilantro (I omitted this) but subbed parsley
3 scallions, chopped
1/4 c seasoned bread crumbs
1 egg
1 tsp cumin
pinch Oregano
Salt & Pepper
Cooking spray

Directions:
Lightly spray cookie sheet & preheat oven to 400 degrees
Place jalapeno, garlic, cilantro & scallions in a food processor and pulse until minced
In a large bowl, combine turkey, chopped herbs, bread crumbs, egg, cumin, salt & pepper. Use your hands to blend thoroughly
Make into small meatballs and place on cookie sheet
Bake for 15 minutes (mine were a bit big so they cooked for about 20 minutes)
Makes 24 meatballs

Dipping Sauce:
1/2 c lowfat buttermilk
1/4 c lite mayo
1/4 c Fat Free Greek yogurt
1 small jalapeno, seeds removed if you don't like it too spicy
1/4 c fresh cilantro
1 tomatillo, husks removed.  Chop the tomatillo
1 clove garlic
1 scallion
juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 tsp dried parsley flakes
1/8 tsp cumin
Salt & Pepper

Mix all ingredients in a blender and serve.

For a pesto dipping sauce, I followed the instructions above but instead of cilantro, I used almost 1 small jar of pesto sauce.

2 points plus for 2 meatballs; add 1 point for dipping sauce

Spiced Apple Swedish Meatballs

This recipe sounded so "Fall like" and since our temps have been lower lately, I thought I'd try this one.  We had our block's 3rd "Appetizers for Dinner Friday Night" and I made these for that event.  I think they turned out really good and moist.  They'd be great for a fun appetizer to share or a football game snack!  

The Spiced Meatballs

The Block's Appetizers

Ingredients:

1/2 cup grated red onion

1 Tb. butter

1 lb. pork sausage

1 lb. ground beef

2 cups panko bread crumbs

1 cup Musselman’s Apple Butter, divided

1/4 cup sour cream

2 eggs

2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. allspice

1 tsp. black pepper

1/2 cup beef broth

2 Tb. honey

Cayenne pepper

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degree F and line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil.

Place a skillet over medium heat and melt the butter in it. When the butter has melted, add the grated onions and saute for 3-4 minutes, until soft.

In a large bowl, mix the sausage, ground beef, panko, 1/2 cup apple butter, sour cream, eggs, salt, pepper, and allspice. Add the onion, once it cools. Get your hands in it and mix well, until evenly combined.

Measure out the meatballs into one ounce portions. Roll tight balls and place them on the baking sheet, close together, but not touching. You should have 40-45 meatballs.

Bake for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, mix the remaining 1/2 cup of apple butter, with beef broth, honey, and 1-2 dashes of cayenne pepper. Whisk well.

After 15 minutes, remove the meatballs from the oven. Pour the sauce over the top, making sure to cover each meatball, and place back in the oven for 5-7 minutes.

Once cooked through, shake the baking sheet a little to loosen the meatballs and serve warm.

  

Simmered Meatballs

B really wanted pasta so I decided to make homemade meatballs to accompany it.  I remember my Mom baking the meatballs but all the recipes I found called for them to be made on the stove.  I found the recipe here and I think they could stand to use a little bit more spice but they were good as is too.  In my quest to find the right recipe, I saw that a few called for Panko breadcrumbs to be placed in a little milk to make them more moist.  I tried that (instead of using regular Italian Bread Crumbs) and I think that made the difference in making these very moist.  Instead of using just regular ground beef, I bought the package that specified it was good for meatballs or meatloaf (due to it having ground beef; ground pork and ground turkey).

Here are my meatballs before cooking:

Here they are mixed in with the pasta and accompanied by the bread sticks I just posted:

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef (as mentioned, I used a mixed package of ground meat)
1/2 cup Panko Bread crumbs
1 egg beaten
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp parsley
1/2 tsp dried onions
1 fresh garlic clove, minced
1 tsp salt
2-3 tsp milk
1 jar tomato sauce / pasta sauce

Directions:
Mix the beef, egg & spices in a large bowl
Put the Panko Bread Crumbs in a small bowl and slowly add the milk, 1 tsp at a time.  Stir them together until they have absorbed the milk but aren't "soupy"
Combine the Panko mixture with the meat mixture
Form into 1" balls
Heat 1-2 tbsp oil in a pan on medium to medium high heat & brown the meatballs in the oil, constantly rotating to get every side brown.
Reduce heat to medium low and add tomato sauce
Simmer for 15-20 minutes - ensuring the temperature is high enough to keep the sauce at a simmer
Remove and serve warm