Beef Quinoa Meatballs

I have fallen for meatballs again. Ever since I made you some simple turkey meatballs, I have been craving Italian food covered in Parmesan  So let me indulge you to a new meatball, this time without the breadcrumbs- instead, ground meat and quinoa.

These meatballs are full of complex carbs and protein- so unless you are craving some pasta with cream sauce, they are completely satisfying on top of a plate of veggies. I made this recipe bigger than my normal recipes, as I was looking forward to freezing a bunch of the meatballs. But big surprise: I have eaten these for 4 days straight over green beans and am defrosting the ones saved for later. So trust me when I say, this is a good recipe!

Beef Quinoa Meatballs (makes ~30 medium meatballs)

• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 small onion
• 1/4 carrot (or 2-3 baby carrots)
• 1 yellow pepper
• 1 red pepper
• 2 c cooked quinoa
• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1 egg
• 2 tbsp chopped parsley
• 28 oz can of diced tomatoes or tomato sauce
• Oregano, salt and pepper

In a big soup pot, begin heating your diced tomatoes with oregano, salt and pepper on low. Dice up your garlic, onion, carrot, and peppers. Mix the vegetables with the cooked quinoa, ground beef, egg, and parsley together in a mixing bowl.

Roll the mixture into small meatballs (I was able to make 30). Sear the meatballs on medium heat in a little olive oil, turning twice or three times to get all sides. Pop them into the soup pot with the tomato sauce to simmer for around 30 minutes, covered, checking one at some point around the 30 minute mark to make sure it’s cooked through.

For those interested in nutrition, each meatball is around 50 calories and has over 4g of protein. You can’t feel bad eating this version of Italian food!

Marisa

About these ads