Chicken Meatballs

(Soy-Free)

Ingredients:

§  1 1/3 lbs chicken, ground 

§  1 cup breadcrumbs (I use 2 slices of whole-wheat bread, toasted and ground)

§  2 minced garlic cloves

§  1 tsp garlic powder 

§  2 tsp dried basil

§  1 egg well beaten

§  1 teaspoon salt

§  1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Preparation:

1.        Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

2.      In a large bowl combine ground chicken, bread crumbs, garlic, garlic powder, basil, , egg, salt, and pepper.

3.      Combine gently. (You can use a fork or spoon if you want, but I think clean hands are the most fun and the most efficient!) 

4.   Gently form the mixture into 1-2 in balls with your hands (or an ice cream scoop) and then place on the prepared sheet.      

6.      Bake for 20-25 minutes, until cooked through and lightly browned. (You can take one out at 15 or 20 min and cut it open to see how much longer you need.)

7.      Remove from the oven and freeze for later or add them to whatever sauce they wil be served in and allow them to simer in the sauce for at least 10 minutes to absorb some of the flavors.

You can use store-bought bread crumbs for

these meatballs, but it's so easy to make your

own if you have a few slices of bread and a

food processor!

If you have meat grinder, feel free to use that

for the chicken meat, or you can also buy pre-ground

chicken meat, but I did mine with a few pulses i the

food processor and it was fine!

If you use this method, just be sure to pulse

until all of the meat is just ground - don't

overdo it!

Now comes the fun part...

I'm telling you, hands is definitely the way to go!

You can make these any size that you want,

but I like mine a little smaller than golfballs.

Just be sure to adjust the cooking time if you

do chose to make really big or really small

meatballs.

Baked, not pan-fried, meats crispy, delicious

meatballs without any added fat or messy

clean up :)

Uncooked...

Cooked and nicely browned

These meatballs freeze beautifully to be

ready to go any time! Then just throw them

in your sauce and let them cook for a while to

defrost and absorb some flavors and your done!

Especially try these with my Squashetti

and Pasta Sauce