I never thought I'd be one of those moms who is hiding healthy ingredients in food her child, but here I am. He arrived. My sweet, toddler fickle age is normally a big eater, non-fussy, but it seems that every other day he decides he hates all foods and how dare I even offer. I try to take those days in stride, knowing that he gets what he needs and he will come around, but I still sometimes wish I could just get a couple of nutritious bites into his mouth. I feel so much better all day, you know? Pair this with my bad menu planing and the fact that Andy and I often do not eat dinner until we 9/10 hours, and I need something to have on the back burner to help me in a bind.
These meatballs are a lifeline. A different recipe was actually scheduled for today, but got so excited response when I asked if I'd share the recipe on Instagram I thought what the heck. This concept will make my life so much easier than you even know. I feel so good about what is in them that if Hugo refuses to nothing but a couple of these a day eat, I'll breathe easy knowing that he became meat, dairy, vegetables and grains whole in every bite.
These meatballs were made with lean turkey, but of course any ground meat would. meatballs are really so adaptable and you can pretty much use what you have on hand. To these I added the eggs, oatmeal (as a binder instead of bread crumbs, although those would work well too) grated carrots, and shredded broccoli stems (Hugo really loves flowers broccoli so I thought I let those out to give it to the side.) are also full of freshly grated Parmesan cheese and small pieces of mozzarella cheese melt and ooze the most delicious way. Herbs and spices can be added of course, all that you really like. I kept it simple and garlic, paprika, a little chili powder and salt and pepper added.
I find these delicious but the main question is whether Hugo did. He tends to like burgers and sausages, so I felt pretty confident. God thank you, he loved and 4 scarfed down in one sitting! He was learning to use his recent utensils and these are the perfect consistency for toddler fork stabbing. (Spoon in photographs may not work as well.)
I hope you find this as a blessing to your family as I do . You can certainly eat too- they would be fabulous with pasta or even on their own with just a vegetarian, but I'm saving these for Hugo. I have them frozen and plan to heat a few every time I have nothing planned and need something quick. What other flavor combos that I can come up with? I think grated sweet potato and cheddar would be great right?
- 2 lbs. ground turkey (or other meat)
- 2 eggs Quick oats
- 1 cup (or breadcrumbs)
- ¾ parmesean cup grated cheese
- 2 oz cheese mozzarella fees, broken into small pieces.
- 2 large carrots, finely grated * rods
- 2 broccoli, shredded **
- smoked paprika, garlic powder, salt, pepper and pinch of powder chili (I just eyeballed them, sprinkled a little of each. I thought in salty I could always add more later, but it was a lot.)
- Preheat oven to 375F. Sprinkle a baking sheet lightly with olive oil. Put aside.
- In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Use a small spoon or a spoon to part 1 inch balls, roll them with your hands and place in rows on baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until golden and cooked. Cool slightly and serve as is or freeze!
* I used the stems of broccoli, but you can certainly use an entire head.