Breakfast Meatballs

These Breakfast Meatballs are a meat-lover's breakfast dream!

I am not an indecisive person, but I sure do hate having to choose between breakfast sausage, bacon and ham when going out to breakfast. Decisions, decisions! It's like asking me which of my kids I love the most - although I may play around from time to time on the answer, the truth is that I have no favorites and I love them all the same. {yes, i just compared my love of pork products to the love i have for my own children. don't judge.} So, what to do when you want to enjoy breakfast sausage, bacon and ham all at the same time? I guess the easy answer is that you eat them all... but let's make these Breakfast Meatballs instead! These amazing {i said it} meatballs will wow the crowd and are perfect for any breakfast, brunch or brinner that you have planned. Serve with a side of country gravy for dipping {drenching} and you're set!

25 Delicious Ways to Celebrate National Meatball Day

March 9th is National Meatball Day, so here are 25 Delicious Ways to Celebrate the day!!

1. Skillet Meatballs in Marinara Sauce

Recipe Runner

2. Cashew Chicken Meatballs

A Zesty Bite

Hawaiian-Pizza Meatballs

A couple weeks ago I made Triple Bacon Meatballs that were inspired by Papa Murphy's Bacon Bacon Bacon Pizza. They turned out freakin' amazing!! I was so smitten with the idea of a pizza-inspired meatball that I decided to make another. This time I opted for a more classic and family favorite - the Hawaiian Pizza.

After rounding up the ingredients I was almost tempted to make a pizza. Almost.

Triple Bacon Meatballs {Bacon Lovers}

So... I took a bunch of bacon and shoved it into 55 meatballs. I share this recipe for Triple Bacon Meatballs because I deeply love you.

I make no bones about it - I love bacon. BAAAAAAAACON.

A while back Papa Murphy's had this pizza that was called the Bacon, Bacon, Bacon Pizza. {would they just hire me to come up with their pizza names already?!?} The pizza was crammed full of bacon, bacon and more bacon - and lucky for me, my in-laws left some after watching the kiddos one day. {score!} The pizza was amazing, I can't believe it's not on Papa Murphy's regular menu. The Bacon, Bacon, Bacon Pizza was the complete inspiration for these Triple Bacon Meatballs

Ground pork, Canadian bacon, peppered bacon, maple bacon. drool.

Meatball Monday: Pesto Chicken Meatballs

Happy Monday!

Ok, let’s not pretend that I am sitting here all bright eyed and bushy tailed greeting you on this Monday morning. The truth is, I am beat. The only thing getting me by right now is a cup of coffee – which I am now thinking could be without creamer since I don’t need anything getting in between me and a bit of caffeine this morning.

You may be wondering, why would she write a Meatball Monday post on Monday morning, can’t she prepare a little and get it done over the weekend? I could have and in fact the plan was to write it last night before going to bed. However, it was 11pm and I noticed that everybody in my house was sleeping – even the 11 week old twins. I said to myself, “Just lay down for a couple of hours and then get up to write that Meatball Monday post.” But that couple hours turned into 6 hours with the twins waking up only twice to eat. Sweet deal – except the part about writing a blog post in the wee hours of the morning.

I am not a morning person to say the least. Until I have my coffee, I would really prefer to be left alone. My husband thought I was an insane bitch when he first encountered my morning attitude. I thought his “jump out bed and start talking and getting ready to go” attitude was just as crazy. It makes me laugh when he brings me coffee in bed before I even wake up – it’s like feeding the tiger before letting it out of the cage. haha

Enough about me and my sleeping - let’s get to those meatballs!

I don’t think I tried pesto until I was around 23. How terrible is that? Ever since then, I have been hooked. I have to be honest and say that these meatballs were extremely last minute and just thrown together. Good news, they came out wonderful! I stood over the kitchen counter devouring mine like a starved kikachu while my husband enjoyed his with a salad. I have some leftover and am thinking they would be uh-mazing in a meatball sandwich.

Pesto Chicken Meatballs
makes 18 meatballs
Ingredients
1lb ground chicken
2.5 tablespoons pesto sauce (I just used store bought)
2 tablespoons shredded parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon pine nuts
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Directions
1. Mix all ingredients together well
2. Roll into 1.5” balls
3. If using meatball bbq rack – cook for 15-20 minutes on medium-high heat, flipping every 5 minutes. If cooking in oven – bake for 25-30 minutes or until starting to turn golden brown.

Meatball Monday: Chicken Bacon Artichoke Meatballs

Last week I professed my love for pizza with Pizza Meatballs for Meatball Monday. This week, my love for pizza is shining through with these meatballs that were inspired by one of my favorite pizzas - Papa Murphy's Chicken Bacon Artichoke deLITE.

Although we make our own pizzas nowadays, that was not always the case. We had a Papa Murphy's in the shopping center across from our apartment complex and on nights when we didn't want to cook, we ordered some good ol' take-n-bake. I loved the flavors of the Chicken Bacon Artichoke pizza - in fact just thinking about it makes me want a slice!

I took all the ingredients that are on the delicious Chicken Bacon Artichoke pizza and rolled them into these lovelies! Chicken, bacon, artichoke hearts, spinach, parmesan cheese and garlic.

The outcome was divine! We enjoyed the Chicken Bacon Artichoke Meatballs with pasta and marinara sauce, but I imagine they would also be good with alfredo sauce. They are wonderful on their own as well - nothing is needed to complete the flavor of these little bad boys!

Chicken Bacon Artichoke Meatballs
(PRINTABLE RECIPE)
Ingredients
1 pound ground chicken
1/2 cup marinated artichoke hearts, chopped
1/2 cup bacon, cooked and chopped
1/4 cup frozen spinach, thawed
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
1 tablespoon garlic
Directions
1. Mix all ingredients together until fully incorporated.
2. Roll into 1.5” balls
3. If using meatball bbq rack – cook for 15-20 minutes on medium-high heat, flipping every 5 minutes. If cooking in oven – bake for 25-30 minutes or until starting to turn golden brown.

Meatball Monday: Pizza Meatballs

I can’t believe it’s already been a week since posting the Green Chicken Enchilada Meatballs! Time is flying by a bit too fast since bringing the twins home. They just turned 8 weeks this past Friday and it seriously feels like we just brought them home…

But anyhow, let’s get to these Pizza Meatballs!

I LOVE pizza. It always sounds good to me and I’ll eat it warm or cold. Lucky for me, my husband and kids share my love of the ol’ pizza pie! We have it at least once a week if not more – homemade of course. (I nearly have my crust recipe perfected and will be sharing it soon!)

So, when I was brainstorming what meatballs I could cook for this week I started thinking about what foods I really LOVE – and of course pizza came to mind. It was a no brainer – I had to cook some Pizza Meatballs! These lovelies are packed with pepperoni, green bell pepper, onion, olive, cheese and mushrooms - all held together with ground pork. Delicious!

Serve them with some marinara sauce to complete the flavor. An afterthought (darn 20/20 hindsight…) was to sprinkle grated parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes to the top of the Pizza Meatballs before serving. 

Happy Monday – hope you all have an awesome week!! :)

Pizza Meatballs
(PRINTABLE RECIPE)
Ingredients
½ tablespoon olive oil
¼ cup green bell pepper, chopped
¼ cup onion, chopped
1lb ground pork
10 slices pepperoni (small size), diced
1 tablespoon olives, chopped
½ cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
¼ cup mushrooms, chopped
Directions
1. Heat olive oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Saute onions and green bell peppers until soft – about 7 minutes. Remove heat and set aside.
2. Combine all ingredients
3. Roll into 1.5” balls
4. If using meatball bbq rack – cook for 15-20 minutes on medium-high heat, flipping every 5 minutes. If cooking in oven – bake for 20-25 minutes or until starting to turn golden brown.
5. Serve with marinara sauce and enjoy!

Meatball Monday: Green Chicken Enchilada Meatballs

I have been waiting all weekend for today! I know, that sounds crazy to actually want Monday to be here, but it’s true. The reason being: Meatball Monday has been on my brain ALL weekend long!

I started up Meatball Monday awhile ago, featuring some goodies such as;

Buffalo Chicken Meatballs

Vietnamese Pork Meatballs

Fontina-Stuffed Veal Meatballs

Jalapeno-Cheeseburger Meatballs

My favorite is probably the Buffalo Chicken Meatballs – followed closely by the Fontina-Stuffed Veal Meatballs. However, they are all delicious and worth a try!

Meatball Monday has been on a long, long hiatus, but it’s making a comeback - and with a totally bitchin’ recipe. Oh yes my friends, it’s so good that it requires the use of the B word. haha

The recipe I am talking about is Green Chicken Enchilada Meatballs. It’s all the goodness of Green Chicken Enchiladas rolled into a delicious little ball. Love it! There is chicken, green chiles, onions, avocados, cheese and tortilla chips (instead of a tortilla) all combined to make these little bad boys.

Serve them with sour cream and the taste is complete!

I am in love with these meatballs and surely ate enough to prove it…

Green Chicken Enchilada Meatballs
(PRINTABLE RECIPE)
Ingredients
¼ cup yellow onion, chopped
1lb ground chicken
½ cup colby jack cheese, shredded
1 4oz can diced green chiles
1 small avocado, cubed
½ cup crushed tortilla chips
¼ cup green chile enchilada sauce
sour cream (for dipping)
Directions
1. Sauté onions until tender. Set aside and let cool.
2. Combine all ingredients
3. Roll into 1.5” balls
4. If using meatball bbq rack – cook for 15-20 minutes on medium-high heat, flipping every 5 minutes. If cooking in oven – bake for 20-25 minutes or until starting to turn golden brown.
5. Top with enchilada sauce and serve with sour cream for dipping.
6. Enjoy!!

Meatball Monday: Mediterranean Turkey Meatballs

We are less than a month away from Halloween and I can’t wait! Costumes are picked out, shopping has begun, must-try Halloween recipes have been picked out – which I must share…

I admitted on my last post that I have become a Pinterest addict, let me show you why;

Broomstick Treats from Mega•Spooky

Halloween Oreo Cupcakes from Gingerbread Bagels

Candy Corn Pudding from sweets4ever @ Craftster

Hand in the Punch Bowl from Simply Stated

Beautiful ideas! I could keep going but I suspect you don't have all day, so I will keep it short. :)

All in all, I am excited for Halloween. It is the beginning of a season full of holidays, anniversaries and birthdays. It is the first holiday my husband and I ever celebrated together as a couple; Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf. It is a time to be something you are not, yet something that is not outside of your realm to pretend to be. I hope everyone has fun this month - if you are in need of any ideas, check out my Pinterest Halloween folder.

Oh, and a Meatball Monday recipe...

I am not lying when I tell you that these were the most tender meatballs I have ever made. The oils from the artichoke hearts and pesto make these turkey meatballs moist and flavorful. Enjoy!

Mediterranean Turkey Meatballs
Ingredients
1 whole red bell pepper, roasted
½ cup artichoke hearts, drained
1.5 tablespoon pesto
5 slices pepperoni
1.25 lb lean turkey, ground
¼ cup parmesan cheese, grated
1 cup marinara sauce

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375. Grease baking sheet
2. Place first 4 ingredients in food processor until well diced. Here is what mine looked like:

3. Combine turkey and red bell pepper mix
4. Form 1 tablespoon balls and place on baking sheet
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until lightly golden brown
6. Sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese and serve with marinara sauce. Enjoy!

Meatball Monday: Pork Meatballs with Sun-Dried Tomatoes & Garlic

“Anyone can cook.” -Chef Gusteau

I love, love, love kids animated movies. This love started a few years ago, just about when my first son was born. I had never seen Cars and my husband couldn’t believe it, so we went to the video store and rented it. The hubby turned up the stereo so the baby could hear too (I was 8 months pregnant), and the movie started… halfway through I had already decided that I HAD to have this movie. So cute, fun and full of lessons – overnight I had become a spokesperson for Pixar, telling everyone to watch this movie. Haha

My son has gone through his favorites, first it was Finding Nemo, then Cars, then Cars Toons and now it is Ratatouille. My favorite too. :) A rat cooking in the kitchen would have never sounded cute to me, but Remy the rat has my heart. The restaurant in the movie is Gusteau’s, a French restaurant in Paris.  Chef Gusteau’s motto was, “Anyone can cook.” While at first Remy does not agree with Gusteau, he comes to realize what Gusteau meant – “Not everyone can become a great artist, but a great artist can come from anywhere.” Beautiful message and so true.

Don’t worry, I did not ruin the movie or spoil the ending. I promise. :)

I know this has nothing to do with meatballs, I have just seen the movie 3 times this weekend – so it’s been on my brain. :) Happy Monday y’all!

Pork Meatballs with Sun-Dried Tomatoes & Garlic

Ingredients

·         3 tablespoons sun-dried tomatoes, minced – I use the ones in a jar packed with olive oil

·         1 tablespoon garlic, minced

·         1 teaspoon parsley

·         ¼ teaspoon salt

·         ¼ teaspoon pepper

·         1 lb ground pork

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400, grease baking sheet

2. Combine all ingredients, form 1” balls and place on baking sheet

3. Bake for 20 minutes or until starting to turn golden brown

Meatball Monday: Jalapeno-Cheeseburger Meatballs

This recipe was totally inspired from my butcher. They have a HUGE assortment of meat – from marinated chicken breasts to alligator tail to the best darn steaks I have ever seen behind a glass case. When I first got my BBQ meatball basket the first place I went was my butcher, no joke. I got ground chicken, ground pork and ground beef with jalapeno and cheddar cheese. Of course I couldn't have their recipe, so I made my own. :)

This recipe would also be great to use with a sloppy joes or tacos instead of meatballs. If you like spicier food I would skip step 2 of sautéing and just add the raw jalapenos and garlic to the ground beef. The chopped cheese that is called for in the recipe is real easy - all I did was shred some cheese and then chop it with a knife. Easy as pie. (Actually easier!)

Not much to write today – just busy with life. :)

Jalapeno-Cheesebuger Meatballs
Ingredients
1 lb ground beef
2/3 cup colby jack, chopped
1/4 cup jalapenos, seeded and diced
1/2 tablespoon garlic, minced

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400, grease baking sheet
2. Heat olive oil in skillet on medium-high heat. Add garlic and jalapenos, saute until jalapenos are soft and garlic is turning golden. Let cool - about 15 minutes
3. Combine ground beef, cheese and jalapeno mixture together. Season with salt and pepper
4. Form 1 inch meatballs and evenly space on baking sheet
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until starting to turn golden-brown
6. Enjoy!

Pork Meatball Banh Mi Inspired Sandwich

About 8 years ago I lived 2 blocks away from this little deli that made the most AMAZING smoked tri-tip sandwiches. The first time that I ordered the tri-tip sandwich I requested cheese and the man working the counter said, “Oh no, no cheese on this sandwich. It will ruin it. Try it one time without cheese and if you don’t like it you can get cheese next time.” Reluctantly I said ok. See, I LOVE cheese – I mean really, really love it. I can’t remember a time I said, “No cheese please” when ordering food, yet I can remember requesting extra cheese on more than a few occasions. Ok, so back to the tri-tip sandwich… the guy was right, it was amazing without cheese, cheese probably would have ruined it. Since that day I have probably consumed close to fifty of those sandwiches – not one with cheese.

To my dismay, not every sandwich is better with cheese, some are better without it. Which brings us to the Banh Mi Inspired Meatball Sandwich…

I found this sandwich recipe while on my quest for the perfect pork meatball recipe. It is a common sandwich in Vietnam called a Banh Mi. Banh Mi is a sandwich served on baguette-style bread filled with meat, pickled carrots, daikon (white radish), jalapenos, cilantro and mayonnaise. My version is Banh Mi Inspired because my grocer was out of baguette bread, I substituted with Bolillos. This sandwich is packed with wonderful flavor and a kick of heat – it includes a carrot & radish slaw, hot chili mayonnaise, jalapenos and no cheese. Sorry cheese, I will get ya on the next sandwich. :) This recipe also calls for Vietnamese Pork Meatballs, which I just posted the recipe for on Monday. Enjoy!

Hot Chili Mayonnaise

Ingredients
1 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon hot chili sauce (I used Sriracha)
2 green onions, finely chopped

Directions
1. Mix all together
2. Let marinade in refrigerator for at least a couple hours

Carrot & Radish Slaw

Ingredients
1 cup grated carrots
1 cup grated radish (I used regular red radishes since I could not find daikon)
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
 ¼ cup unseasoned rice vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt

Directions
1. Combine all ingredients
2. Let marinade in refrigerator for at least an hour, mixing 2-3 times. Drain

Pork Meatball Banh Mi Inspired Sandwich

Ingredients
Bolillos (These are Mexican rolls that I have found in the bakery of several grocery stores)
Hot Chili Mayonnaise
1 jalapeno, sliced
5 Vietnamese Pork Meatballs
Carrot & Radish Slaw

Directions
1. Slice Bolillo in half horizontally and scoop out the bread in each half leaving about a ½” inch shell
2. Slather each half with Hot Chili Mayonnaise
3. Place sliced Jalapenos in bottom half of the Bolillo shell (I put them in a single layer, but if you like it spicier – add more!)
4. Place the Vietnamese Pork Meatballs into the bottom half of sandwich, on top of Jalapenos
5. Add about 3 tablespoons of Carrot & Radish Slaw on top of meatballs
6. Top with top half of Bolillo
7. Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from epicurious

Meatball Monday: Vietnamese Pork Meatballs

We really love meatballs; I love that they are so versatile and my hubby loves that they are, well – meat. I was never really a big fan of them before I met my hubby – and then he bought a big ol’ bag of them from Sam’s Club. I cooked them in different sauces, used them in a few recipes and of course used them in good ol’ spaghetti. But then I was bored with them – and didn’t want anymore. End of the meatball story.

Fast forward a couple years and I decided to make some meatballs from fresh. ( I like saying “from fresh” more so than “from scratch” - since from scratch means from nothing, I really have not made much “from scratch”. From fresh means I have used fresh ingredients, not previously frozen or canned.) Whoa, sorry about that rant – I shall digress… The meatballs were simple, but wonderful. I could not believe that I had never made any before, I felt like I had been ripping myself off! Not only was I super impressed with them, my 2 year old loved them – which is why I ended up buying the meatball basket for the bbq. I love bbq’ing and my toddler loves meatballs, so buying the basket was totally justified… It took the meatballs to the next level and now I am on my quest to find/create the best meatball recipes out there!

Every Monday we will feature a different meatball recipe, meats ranging from beef to fish and ingredients being limitless. I hope everyone enjoys!

This week we will start with Vietnamese Meatballs, and what a great way to start! I made these for a Banh Mi Sandwich that I found at Epicurious.com. The meatballs call for two ingredients that are not common in everyone’s kitchen, fish oil and sriracha. To be honest I had neither, but now that I have both I will be trying recipes that call for them. The fish oil is just what it's name says and it smells just as you could imagine fish oil smelling. The sriracha is spicy, spicy - so just adjust recipe to how hot you like your food. Combined they make wonderful ingredients for this meatball. Enjoy!

Vietnamese Meatballs

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground pork
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh basil
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 green onions, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon Sriracha or other hot chili sauce
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease cookie sheet
2. Mix all ingredients together
3. Form 1 inch meatballs and place on cookie sheet, bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown
4. Enjoy!

Fontina-Stuffed Veal Meatballs

My new love affair, Meatballs. A few months ago I made Homemade Meatballs for the first time, sad huh? While searching for a basic meatball recipe I found tons of recipes from around the world. Little did I know that meatballs are consumed globally, all different meats and ingredients. I just thought it was too good to be true… but then it got better. I found this Nonstick Meatball Basket that allows you to cook meatballs on the bbq! It has been a dream come true. I want to make meatballs every night – I even made a special trip to the butchers just for ground meat. Super yum! I need to get a meat grinder because I have a feeling this is going to get out of control!

Fontina-Stuffed Veal Meatballs
Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• ¼ cup onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon thyme leaves
• 1/4 teaspoon minced rosemary
• Salt & Black Pepper
• 2 slices of white sandwich bread, crusts removed and bread torn into 1-inch pieces
• whole milk
• 1 pound ground veal
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• 3 ounces Italian Fontina cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

Directions

1. Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in skillet. Add the onion and garlic, cook over medium-high heat until softened. Add the thyme and rosemary, season with salt & pepper. Let cool, about 10 minutes
2. Soak the bread pieces in the milk until absorbed. Squeeze the milk from the bread and transfer to medium bowl, add onion mixture, veal, egg, Parmigiano-Reggiano and 1 ½ teaspoons of kosher salt and 1 teaspoon of black pepper. Mix with hands until well blended
3. Scoop 1 1/2 tablespoon-size balls from the veal mixture. Stuff a cube of Fontina into the center of each meatball and roll to enclose the cheese. Transfer the meatballs to a plate or baking sheet and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
4. Preheat oven to 350
5. Bake 25-30 minutes or until are golden brown. Some of the cheese may ooze, but don’t worry, there will still be cheese inside. :) I bbq’d my meatballs for about 8 minutes on each side then returned them to the skillet that I cooked the onion mixture in and let heat on WARM until we were ready to eat.
6. Enjoy with Marinara!

These are the best meatballs I have ever made, it may have been the fact they were veal – but nonetheless, they were the best! Recipe adapted from Food & Wine.