Neat balls – the perfect plant replacement for traditional meat balls.
If you’re like me (living in the Southern Hemisphere) then you may be starting to look for heartier nourishment come meal time.
Below I am sharing a recipe for one of my favourite additions to a pasta sauce – Neat balls. Packed full of fibre and plant protein, these are a wonderful addition to an autumn or winter’s menu. My favourite part about this dish is it satisfies but without leaving you feeling sickly full like traditional meat balls and pasta can do.
Serve these up with Pasta sauce and spaghetti, courgetti (as pictured) or with pasta sauce over creamy mash (my absolute favourite), this dish will tick all the boxes for nourishing, hearty and warming.
Begin by preparing the sauce. Add garlic and onion to a saucepan and sauté in a small amount of oil for a few minutes until onion becomes translucent. Add other remaining ingredients and allow sauce to gently cook on a low-medium heat without the lid for approx. 20 mins while you prepare other steps. After 20 mins, turn the heat off and place the lid back on to keep warm.
Begin by combining all the ingredients (except for the oil, bread crumbs and carrots) in a food processor. Processor until the mixture comes together as a sticky consistency. You may need to do it in half batches depending on the power of your processor. Once you have a nice mixture, add in the grated carrot and breadcrumbs, if the mixture is too dry add 1Tbsp apple sauce (add more, if necessary). Roll into balls approx. size of a golf ball – you should end up with approx. 16 (4 balls per person). Add a drizzle of oil to a pan over medium heat and cook ½ of the batch at a time for a few minutes each side until golden brown. Set aside.
Add tomatoes to a tray lined with paper, drizzle with oil if desired. Place in the oven on 200 degrees and allow to cook for 15 minutes or until the tomatoes begin to blister and bubble. Once cooked, turn the heat off and open the oven door slightly.
Add peeled potatoes to a pot and fill with cold water until all potatoes are submerged. Cook until the potatoes are falling apart (this is the key to smooth mash). Drain potatoes and return back to the pot. Using a potato masher, mash the potatoes as much as you can before adding any liquid then add Nuttlelex if using or simply add the nut milk. Mash & whip until smooth, season if desired.
Assemble the mash in bowls, top with sauce & add 4 meatballs to each dish. Garnish with a few oven roasted tomatoes, a sprinkle of pine nuts and fresh herbs.
* You can substitute breadcrumbs for more oats or you can use almond meal / flour but note the consistency will alter.
* You can cook the balls in the oven on a paper lined tray however, the result will be less crunchy on the outside
* You can substitute shredded carrot for red capsicum – I sometimes like to use half/half
* You can serve this dish with polenta instead of mashed potatoes or even with Courghetti (spaghetti made from spiralising zucchini)
Ingredients
Directions
Begin by preparing the sauce. Add garlic and onion to a saucepan and sauté in a small amount of oil for a few minutes until onion becomes translucent. Add other remaining ingredients and allow sauce to gently cook on a low-medium heat without the lid for approx. 20 mins while you prepare other steps. After 20 mins, turn the heat off and place the lid back on to keep warm.
Begin by combining all the ingredients (except for the oil, bread crumbs and carrots) in a food processor. Processor until the mixture comes together as a sticky consistency. You may need to do it in half batches depending on the power of your processor. Once you have a nice mixture, add in the grated carrot and breadcrumbs, if the mixture is too dry add 1Tbsp apple sauce (add more, if necessary). Roll into balls approx. size of a golf ball – you should end up with approx. 16 (4 balls per person). Add a drizzle of oil to a pan over medium heat and cook ½ of the batch at a time for a few minutes each side until golden brown. Set aside.
Add tomatoes to a tray lined with paper, drizzle with oil if desired. Place in the oven on 200 degrees and allow to cook for 15 minutes or until the tomatoes begin to blister and bubble. Once cooked, turn the heat off and open the oven door slightly.
Add peeled potatoes to a pot and fill with cold water until all potatoes are submerged. Cook until the potatoes are falling apart (this is the key to smooth mash). Drain potatoes and return back to the pot. Using a potato masher, mash the potatoes as much as you can before adding any liquid then add Nuttlelex if using or simply add the nut milk. Mash & whip until smooth, season if desired.
Assemble the mash in bowls, top with sauce & add 4 meatballs to each dish. Garnish with a few oven roasted tomatoes, a sprinkle of pine nuts and fresh herbs.
* You can substitute breadcrumbs for more oats or you can use almond meal / flour but note the consistency will alter.
* You can cook the balls in the oven on a paper lined tray however, the result will be less crunchy on the outside
* You can substitute shredded carrot for red capsicum – I sometimes like to use half/half
* You can serve this dish with polenta instead of mashed potatoes or even with Courghetti (spaghetti made from spiralising zucchini)
