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Florentine Turkey Meatballs

Healthy, lean, easy to make meatballs packed with the goodness of peppers and spinach. These come out slightly bigger than your average meatball - about double the size of a golf ball and are nice and crisp on the outside from the baking.

An optional alternative to baking if you don't mind a tiny bit of extra calories, is to pan fry them in olive oil until all the sides are seared, then simmer them on low in 1/4-1/2 cup of low sodium chicken broth until fully cooked.

Add these meatballs to some whole wheat pasta or spaghetti squash and tomato sauce, or on top of some bread or in lettuce wrap, or eat them plain as a high protein low-carb snack.

The ingredients are very versatile - if you don't like peppers, substitute it with 1/2 a grated zucchini or carrot, instead of spinach, try using kale or parsley, if you don't have ground turkey, use pork, beef, or chicken, if you don't have oat flour, make some breadcrumbs from low carb bread or use almond flour.

Not a fan of italian seasonings? Try paprika, cumin, and chilli flakes. Feeling a bit Asian? Add a tablespoon or two of soy sauce, fish sauce, and sesame seeds. The options are endless and they will all have around the same nutritional breakdown and delicious results!

Cooking Notes: Since ground turkey has a mild flavour, don't be afraid to go a bit heavier on the seasonings. The mixture will be a bit wet and sticky but don't worry, the meatballs will hold up very nicely.

If you don't feel like baking the meatballs, try searing them in frying pan and then simmering them some chicken broth, your meatballs will soak up the flavor and be super moist and juicy.

Florentine Turkey Meatballs (makes 11-12 meatballs)

Ingredients

450 g Extra Lean Ground Turkey
2 Egg Whites (about 1/4 cup)
1/2 Red Pepper, finely diced
1 1/2 cup Spinach, finely chopped
1/3 cup Coarse Oat Flour
1 1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
2 tablespoons Italian Seasoning
1 teaspoon Salt (more if your Italian Seasoning does not include salt)
1/2 teaspoon Pepper (to own preference)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper
Put all ingredients into a large bowl and using your hands, through mush and mix the ingredients until everything is incorporated
Place two (2) tablespoons of the mixture into your hands and roll it into a ball and place on the baking sheet, continue until all the mixture is used up
Bake for around 22-27 minutes, check to make sure that the meatballs are full cooked through
Let cool for 5 minutes

Storing and Reheating Notes: These store fantastically in the freezer and can last in the fridge for up to a week. They also taste even better the next day as it had time for the the spices to sink in and when reheated, the peppers become softer (which I like). If reheating from frozen, I would suggest you defrost them first.

Serve them with an easy healthy marinara sauce of 1 regular sized can of diced tomatoes, a tablespoon of tomato paste, and garlic, salt, pepper, and oregano.