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Turkey Meatballs are cooked in tomato sauce for maximum flavor. Healthy and hearty, these can be eaten over pasta, in a sandwich, or however you like.
It always blows my mind when I hear successful food bloggers say they hate writing. It's kind of the whole point, as far as I'm concerned. If I could get away with only writing, this would be so much more fun. Writing is the one part that I'm actually good at. Well, you might disagree on the quality, but I enjoy it.
I've loved writing since I was a kid. I wrote so much emo poetry in middle school, and probably high school, too. It's pretty embarrassing, but it doesn't lessen my love of words. My favorite food bloggers still share stories about their life with a unique voice and eloquence. It's what I've always aimed for. No idea if I'm actually doing it.
A really great blogger could probably come up with a totally smooth segue into talking about turkey meatballs. If you know of one, leave it in the comments.
These turkey meatballs are totally healthy and very versatile. They're cooked on the stovetop in a simple tomato sauce. You can serve them over pasta, in a grain bowl, or make them into a healthier meatball sub that you immediately make slightly less healthy by piling on some mozzarella cheese.
How to make Turkey Meatballs
Start by blitzing up an onion and a carrot in your food processor until you have little veggie bits. Keep a couple tablespoons aside for your meatballs, and sautee the rest with some dried herbs until soft. Then all that's left to do is add some canned tomatoes, salt and pepper, and a bit of sugar for balance. Let that simmer away while we get our hands dirty.
To make the meatballs, combine your ground turkey with your veggies, some parm, some dried thyme, and some breadcrumbs to help hold everything together. Gently mix this with your hands, then begin forming your mixture into walnut-sized meatballs. Make up all the meatballs first before gently dropping them into the simmering tomato sauce in concentric circles. Then all that's left to do is let the pot gently bubble away for about 30 minutes. Done.
I guess the conclusion here is that we all have different talents, and that's totally awesome. We also all have different tastes, but I'm betting that most people are gonna love these Turkey Meatballs.
Looking for more awesome, easy meatball recipes? Try Spaghetti and Sausage Meatballs or Mozzarella-Stuffed Meatball Sliders.
PrintTurkey Meatballs
Tender and flavorful turkey meatballs simmered in tomato sauce are delicious and possibly good for you.
- Prep Time: 30
- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Low Calorie
Ingredients
For the sauce
- 1 small onion, peeled and quartered
- 1 carrot chopped into four pieces
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon coarse salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
For the meatballs
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 3 tablespoons grated parmesan
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped onion and carrot, reserved from the sauce
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
Instructions
For the sauce
- Pop your onion and carrot into a food processor and blitz your veggies to a pulp. Scoop out two tablespoons and set aside for the meatballs.
- Heat olive oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add the onion and carrot mixture, along with the dried herbs and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the tomato, water, sugar, salt, and pepper, and let it come to a bubble. Reduce to a simmer while you get to work on the meatballs.
For the meatballs
- In a large bowl, combine all ingredients for the meatballs. Gently mix together with your hands. Be sure not to overwork it.
- Pinch off a generous tablespoon at a time and roll the mixture into a ball. Set them on a dish until you have them all rolled.
- Drop meatballs into simmering sauce in concentric circles. Let the meatballs simmer for about 30 minutes.
- Serve on a toasted bun with some mozzarella or over pasta, rice or couscous. Or whatever other awesome combination you can come up with.
Keywords: Turkey, Tomato Sauce
Recipe adapted from Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home by Nigella Lawson.
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