Hidden Veggie Meatballs Recipes

Steps:

• Place shredded carrot and zucchini on a clean towel and wring out as much liquid as possible.
• Place strained carrot and zucchini in a bowl and add ground beef, ground pork, parmesan, onion, parsley, salt, pepper, garlic powder, breadcrumbs, and eggs. Mix until just combined.
• Grab about a ¼ cup (85 grams) of the mixture and roll into a ball.
• Pan-fry the meatballs in a large pan over medium-high heat until all sides are golden brown, about 10 minutes, then add the marinara sauce and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Or, can bake the meatballs on a parchment-lined baking sheet at 350˚F (180˚C) for 30-35 minutes, flipping after the first 15 minutes. Warm up marinara sauce and serve on the side.
• Serve the meatballs with cooked spaghetti and Parmesan cheese.
• Enjoy!

Steps:

• Children: Squeeze all the sausage meat out of the sausage skins into a large bowl and add the mince. Tip all the rest of the meatball ingredients, except the olive oil, into the bowl and season with black pepper then squish everything together through your hands until completely mixed. Keep an eye on younger children to make sure they don't taste any of the raw mix.
• Children: Roll the meatball mix into walnut-sized balls and place them on a plate - this is a job children as young as 2 can help with and a great job to help teach older children basic division.
• Grown ups: While the children are rolling the meatballs make the sauce. Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the courgette and garlic and cook for 5 mins until soft and mushy. Stir in the tomato puree, sugar and vinegar leave for 1 min then tip in the tomatoes and simmer for 5 mins. If your children like courgettes then you can leave the sauce chunky. But if, like mine, they hate courgettes then blitz the sauce with a hand blender - either way continue to simmer sauce gently while you cook the meatballs. If your child is confident with heat, from 7+ they can cook the sauce with supervision.
• Grown ups: Heat the oil in a large frying pan and, working in batches, brown the meatballs on all sides then pop them into the sauce - continue to simmer the sauce for 15 mins, stirring very gently until the meatballs are cooked through. Serve with cooked spaghetti, extra grated Parmesan and a few torn basil leaves your child has picked and torn.

Steps:

• SAUCE:.
• 1. Steam the carrots for 20 minutes until tender.
• 2. Add the spinach to the carrots and continue to steam for 5 minutes.
• 3. Add carrots and spinach to food processor and puree (approx. 2 minutes).
• 4. Open one can of the petite diced tomatoes and add to the food processor, blending the tomatoes, carrots and spinach together until all large chunks are gone.
• 5. In a large pot, warm olive oil over medium heat.
• 6. Add the onions and saute until translucent.
• 7. Add the garlic and saute for 1 more minute.
• 8. Then add the carrot/tomato/spinach mixture,along with all the remaining SAUCE ingredients.
• 9. Simmer on low heat for 4-6 hours, uncovered. Stir occasionally.
• MEATBALLS:.
• 1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
• 2. Add all of the meatball ingredients to a bowl, and knead with hands until combined thoroughly.
• 2. Let the mixture rest for 10 minutes so chia seeds can soften.
• 3. Form mixture into small meatballs and place in an ungreased 9x13 inch pan - should make 24 meatballs and fit the pan perfectly.
• 4. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.
• 5. Once done, add the meatballs to the sauce cooking on the stove.
• 6. Serve over your favorite pasta or on a hoagie!