Munchkin Meatballs: Baked Turkey and Vegetable Meatballs
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Turkey and Vegetable Meatballs are packed with carrots and zucchini and the flavor will not overpower what you serve these meatballs with.
I am constantly looking for new ways to make my daughters meals even more nutritious. So far her toddler favorites seem to be cheerios, fruit, pastas, ice pops and meatballs. If I would allow it I am sure she would eat fruit, pasta and Cheerios all day.
As a mom I feel a lot of responsibility for what my family is eating, so I started to work with what is in front of me (what she actually likes). I started creating ice pops packed with delicious and nutritious fruit and yogurt to make her snacks healthier.
The veggies have been a huge stress. Aside from cucumber coins, she will eat peas, every couple of days, I can’t seem to get her to eat any real veggies. So, I started working on this meatball recipe. It is so versatile and perfect with spaghetti and red sauce, in sweet and sour sauce, today we are enjoying these over a bed of egg noodles with some simple 5 minute homemade brown gravy.
Packed with vegetables, I chose carrots and zucchini for this recipe because they are always readily available and the flavor will not overpower the dishes that you serve these meatballs with. Look at those moist and delicious meatballs with ribbons of carrot and zucchini running though. Although I call these Munchkin Meatballs, Chad and I both love and enjoy these. I am sure you will too!
Munchkin Meatballs: Baked Turkey and Vegetable Meatballs
Ingredients
- 16 ounces lean ground turkey
- 1 carrot, peeled and grated
- 1 zucchini, peeled and grated
- 1/2 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a large bowl combine all ingredients. Mix until combined, do not over mix (over mixing can cause tough meatballs). Using a 1 tablespoon scoop to portion, lightly form the mixture into meatballs a little more than 1/2 ounce each.
- Place meatballs on baking sheet (make sure they are not touching). Bake for 20 minutes.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition
All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe’s nutritional value will vary depending on the ingredients used, measuring methods, and portion sizes.
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I´m sure this is a very well balance recipe for your daughter.
Love from Spain
Marialuisa
Wait….you sneaked vegetables into my meat?!? CURSES! 😉
ha ha ha ha ha. Best comment I've seen today!
Great idea! And those popsicles look awesome 🙂
This looks great, Donna. Way to go with creating a meatball the whole family will eat! 😛
I bet the zucchini adds a special touch. These sound amazing – you've been a busy girl! Does everything you make turn out so great? I have about a 40% failure on recipes these days 🙁 Poor me!
These look good.
Ah! These are so cute! When I first saw the image, I thought it looked like the veggies were making a smilie face inside the meatball – ha.
I made these and wrote about them here. I royally messed up the gravy. (My fault trying to swap out ingredients) For some reason the meatballs wouldn't crisp up in the oven. The leftovers were great heated up in a skillet with no oil. The outside got nice and brown that way.
Thanks for sharing your recipe.
I love your recipes! Made a batch of these today for my 20month old and the rest of the family. Plan to try with a few different sauces this week! Thanks!
I made these! My picky almost 2-year-old loved them! I loved them too! Wondering how these would freeze.
These were delicious!! My 20 month old son ate three of these meatballs. I used ground chicken instead of ground turkey since it was all I had. I couldn't stop eating these myself!!!
Do they freeze well?
Yes! They are awesome. Just pop them in the microwave or you can toss them in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes straight out of the freezer. Enjoy and let me know how it goes!
can you sub ground chicken?
This recipe was super easy and had great flavor. I do agree with some of the other commenters though – this was too sweet for my taste. I'd probably use a quarter of the white sugar. Otherwise a great dish, I will definitely be making again! I think I may even add some chick peas or kale next time.
Joseph Donahue
I love meatballs and these are just delicious!