Eggplant Balls Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Grease foil with olive oil.
• Arrange eggplant halves cut-sides-down onto the prepared baking sheet. Pierce skin of eggplant several times with a fork.
• Roast eggplant in preheated oven until soft, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to cool completely.
• Scoop the flesh from the eggplant halves onto a cutting board; chop into small chunks and put into a large mixing bowl.
• Mix ground turkey, carrot, onion, Parmesan cheese, egg, garlic, basil, parsley, oregano, sea salt, and black pepper with the eggplant chunks until ingredients are somewhat evenly mixed together. Gently mix almond flour into the eggplant mixture; scoop with an ice cream scoop onto the prepared baking sheet.
• Reduce oven heat to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and bake meatballs in oven for 15 minutes, flip the meatballs, and bake until browned and no longer pink in the center, about 10 minutes more.
• While the meatballs bake, heat marinara sauce in saucepan over medium-low heat until hot; add baked meatballs to the sauce and stir to coat.

Steps:

• Heat a large high-sided skillet over medium heat. Add the olive oil and saute the garlic in the hot oil until just fragrant and barely starting to lightly brown, about 30 seconds. Add the eggplant and 1/4 cup of water. Lower the heat to low and cover the skillet. Allow the eggplant to steam until soft, about 20 minutes. Allow to cool slightly, if you have time.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with unbleached parchment paper.
• Place the eggplant mixture in a food processor and pulse until well chopped, but not pureed. Or just do this on a cutting board with a knife.
• Transfer the eggplant mixture to a large mixing bowl and add the cheese, parsley, basil, eggs, breadcrumbs, salt, and pepper. Stir the mixture well to combine, using your hands or a wooden spoon. The mixture can be refrigerated at this point, covered for up to a day. It is easier to roll into meatballs when the mixture is cooled down. (If doing so, preheat the oven 30 minutes before baking the meatballs.)
• Roll or scoop the mixture using a 1- to 1 1/2-ounce ice cream scoop into 1 1/2-inch balls and place on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 25 minutes, or until firm on the outside and light brown underneath.
• Meanwhile, heat the marinara sauce in a large saucepan over low heat until simmering. Transfer the meatballs to the saucepan with marinara sauce. Toss with the sauce and serve.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC) and lightly grease 2 oven trays. Clean the eggplants, peel them and slice them into disks. Lightly drizzle with olive oil and bake them for 45 min until golden. Let them cool. In a food processor, finely chop the eggplant.
• In a bowl mix the onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, basil, parsley, egg and parmesan cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Add the chopped eggplants.
• Wet your hands with a little water and shape the eggplant mixture into balls. Place them on a non-stick oven tray and bake them for 25 minutes until deep golden brown and slightly crusty. Do not overbake or they will be too dry. Remove tray from oven and cover with foil to let the meatballs steam until ready to serve.

Steps:

• For the meatballs: Boil the chopped eggplant in salted boiling water for 4 minutes. Drain well and let cool. Squeeze out any excess water from the eggplant.
• In a bowl, add the bread and milk. Allow the bread to sit and absorb the milk for a few minutes. Squeeze out as much of the milk from the bread as possible.
• In another mixing bowl, add the eggplant and break up the bread into the bowl. Add the eggs, Pecorino, Parmigiano cheese, and salt. Then add the bread crumbs and flour. Cook's Note: If your mixture has a lot of moisture you may need to add more bread crumbs and flour. Mix well until all the ingredients are evenly distributed. With your hands, shape the meatballs into the size of golf balls. Dredge the meatballs in the flour.
• For the tomato sauce: In a large saucepan heat up olive oil. Saute the onions and add the tomato puree and salt. Bring the mixture to a light boil, then turn the heat to medium. Add the meatballs to the sauce and allow to cook for approximately 15 minutes. Plate and add the Parmigiano cheese.

Steps:

• In a medium-size pot, place one inch of water, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and eggplant. Cover pot and cook 15 minutes, or until eggplant is tender. Drain well.
• Chop the cooked eggplant. In a large bowl, combine eggplant, onion, green pepper, 3/4 cup bread crumbs, 1 egg, cheese, paprika, pepper and remaining salt. Cool and chill 2 to 3 hours or overnight.
• Place flour in a bowl. Beat the remaining egg in a separate small bowl. Drop mixture by heaping teaspoonfuls into the flour and coat completely. Then dip the eggplant balls into the beaten egg; finally, coat the balls with the remaining bread crumbs.
• In a large skillet, heat vegetable oil and fry eggplant balls until they are heated through.