Mini turkey meatballs

A stash of mini turkey meatballs in the freezer is a versatile thing... So many possibilities. The obvious way to enjoy them is with an Italian marinara sauce, either on their own or with a little pasta. But they could also be transformed into many kinds of ethnic meals. How about a Vietnamese glazed meatball to place in a lettuce cup along with sliced veggies? Or how about simmering them in a curry sauce for an Indian inspired meal? They could go into a Greek pita salad or wrap with feta cheese, tomatoes, onions, green peppers, kalamata olives, cucumbers and a Greek salad dressing. And speaking of Greece, click here to see a Greek avgolemono soup with these mini meatballs. They'd make a muy bueño Tex-Mex appie when simmered in a smokey chipotle salsa and served with a chipotle crema dipping sauce. Get creative! Mini meatballs, maximum possibilities. 

1 pound lean ground turkey breast
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup non fat Greek yogurt
1/4 cup Hellman's mayo
1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 of a small onion, minced

Sauté the minced garlic and diced onion in the olive oil. Let cool a bit. Mix the mayo, yogurt and panko crumbs together. Combine all other ingredients in a big bowl. Mix, but be careful not to overwork the meat because it can make it tough. Shape the mixture into bite-size balls. Add to a cookie sheet lined with a sheet of aluminum foil and drizzled with olive oil so it won't stick. Bake meatballs in a 350° oven for 20-25 minutes. I usually broil the meatballs for an extra five minutes to give them some color.

On top of spa-gheeeeeetti….

Shown below, these same meatballs have been super-sized up to make big meatballs, which after cooking got a nice hot bath in some zesty marinara sauce. After simmering for about 20 minutes, the sauce tasted meaty and the meatballs tasted saucy! We had the meatballs with their favorite pal, spaghetti..