Protein Packed Whole Grain Meatballs

So I have always been curious as to how to make delicious meatballs, and I found a recipe last night that I spruced up and made my own. Rather than packing the meatballs with pretty empty calories like white bread, I switched it up a bit and made some fantastic meatballs that were full of protein and fairly healthy for you.

Breadcrumbs:
4 slices whole grain or multi-grain bread torn into pieces
1 Tbsp Flat Leaf Parsley chopped
1 clove garlic chopped
1/4 cup grated parm

Blend bread in food processor until it becomes fine. Add in everything else and pulse until well mixed / chopped.

Meatballs:
1.12 lb 85/15 Ground Beef
1 lb Ground Veal
4 Slices Whole Grain Bread (I used 15 Grain Whole Wheat) - No crust
1 Cup Parmesan Cheese
2 Large Eggs - beaten
1 tbsp Salt
2 tbsp chopped basil
3 tbsp Chopped Parsely
1 tsp Garlic
1 tsp Black Pepper
1/4 cup breadcrumbs
1 cup milk (used 2%)

Tear the bread slices and place in a bowl with milk. Combine all dry ingredients / herbs with eggs (except parmesan cheese) and mix together well. Combine the meat in a large bowl and add all ingredients except the bread soaking in milk. Mix well but don't over mix to combine. Once the bread / milk mixture has soaked up the milk mix with meat until combined evenly. Cover with saran wrap and refrigerate 1-1.5 hours.

Preheat the oven to 350 and use a little bit of olive oil to LIGHTLY oil a baking pan with at least an inch lip. Take meat out of fridge and roll into desired size balls (mine were about 1.5 - 2 ounces each - ~36 meatballs) and place onto oiled baking pan ensuring they don't touch. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until meatballs are cooked and the juices released.

I added these to a large pot with garlic and onions and marinara sauce and served it over whole wheat spaghetti.

Serves 7-8 (5 meatballs 1/2 c sauce per serving)

Meatballs w/ Sauce = 452 calories / 24g Carbs / 23g Fat / 40g protein / 4g Fiber / 9g Sugar

Substitute your own choice of meat if you want fattier or leaner meatballs. The lower fat content, the drier the meatball can be.