One of the key ingredients to a good meatball is panade, a mixture of milk-soaked bread. For anyone trying to reduce the amount of carbs in their diet, meatballs can be a bit difficult. One day while making whipped cauliflower (a day I was craving mashed potatoes), I thought that this would make a great replacement for the panade. This idea was born.
- Yield: 30 meatballs
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
Low-carb Italian meatballs
These meatballs are packed with Italian flavor. Cooked and mashed cauliflower is the secret to make these deliciously low in carbs. Feel free to adjust/remove herbs and spices as you wish...I recommend keeping the fennel seed – it tastes so good in this recipe.
Ingredients
- ground pork - 1/2 lb.
- ground beef - 1/2 lb.
- cooked cauliflower - 1 cup
- egg - 1 whole
- garlic powder - 1/2 teaspoon
- onion powder - 1/2 teaspoon
- basil - 1/2 teaspoon
- fennel seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
- black pepper - 1/2 teaspoon
- rosemary - 1/2 teaspoon
- red pepper - 1/4 teaspoon
- oregano - 1/4 teaspoon
- salt - 1 teaspoon
- grated parmesan cheese - 1/2 cup
- Better Than Bouillon, beef - 1 teaspoon
Instructions
- Mash your cooked cauliflower until it is the consistency of mashed potatoes.
- Combine all ingredients together in a large bowl. Do not overwork the mixture, but make sure everything is distributed evenly.
- Divide mixture into about 30 balls.
- Freeze the meatballs. I like to place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and then place the whole tray into the chest freezer. If you don't have the freezer space, feel free to freeze in smaller groups.
- Once the meatballs are frozen, bag them all together in a large gallon-size Ziploc freezer bag.
- When you are ready to cook the meatballs, bake them in a 400°F oven for about 20 minutes until just browned.
Try these by rolling them in a bit of marinara sauce and topping with a slice of provolone cheese.
