Involving kids in meal preparation is an important part of teaching them where foods come from and what it takes to eat right. LEVL weight loss expert, Liz Josefsberg loves to add veggies to most of her recipes including chili, chicken pot pie, and lasagna. She doesn’t like to call it “hiding” veggies because she always wants her kids to know what she put into their foods and how to bulk up recipes with fruits and vegetables. Liz has a rule in her house – At least one fruit or vegetable is served with every meal or snack.  This recipe is no exception to that rule, she has found a tasty and creative way to get more veggies into one of her favorite meat dishes!

This meatball recipe was inspired by Liz’s recent trip to Italy where she took a family cooking class and learned amazing tips about prepping and flavoring her meatballs. Liz’s favorite tip was to coat your  hands lightly in olive oil prior to rolling the meatballs to keep them from sticking to your hands and to add an added seal to the outside. She also learned the secret of adding just a half teaspoon of nutmeg for deeper flavor. Liz used fresh nutmeg ground right into the meat mixture along with the other fresh herbs and spices. Liz loves involving her kids in the rolling of the meatballs in this well-rounded dish.

FAMILY-FRIENDLY MEATBALLS

  • 1 pound 93% lean ground turkey or a combo of ground chicken and turkey
  • 1/2 zucchini, grated or chopped
  • 1 carrot, grated or chopped
  • 1/2 onion, grated or chopped
  • 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon salt (optional)
  • ¼ cup fresh chopped basil
  • ½ tsp nutmeg
  • 1 egg, slightly beaten
  • 1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs (or more to desired stiffness)
  • 3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 tbsp olive oil

In a medium bowl, mix together meatball ingredients. If the mixture is too wet to hold together, add more bread crumbs. Shape into 1-2 inch balls. Meatballs can either be baked at 375 degrees for between 20-40 minutes (depending on the size of the meatballs) or simmered in your favorite marinara sauce (homemade or jarred) for 30 minutes. They retain extra flavor this way and stay very moist!