Impossible Meatballs
Impossible meatballs! Vegan meatballs made with Impossible burger meat. Serve with marinara sauce over pasta or in meatball subs.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup grated onion, with it's juice* (see note)
- 1 slice white or white wheat bread, crusts removed
- 12 ounces 1 package Impossible ground meat
- 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed*
- 2 tablespoons milk or water*
- 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon ground fennel seeds*
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 3 medium garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, or plant-based cheese, optional*
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cups sauce, for serving
Instructions
- Grate the onion using a box grater until you have about 1/4 cup onion with its juice. See note below.
- Place the onion and juices in a small bowl and tear the bread, then add to the onion bowl. Let soak for about 5 minutes-- this will help your meatballs to bind together and you want the bread very soft. I recommend a white or white wheat bread-- a very hearty bread, like Ezekial, won't work.
- In a separate small bowl, combine the flaxseed and milk and let sit for 2-3 minutes until gelled.
- Place the onion and bread mixture into a large bowl along with the other ingredients: flaxseed mixture, impossible meat, parsley, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, fennel, salt garlic and parmesan cheese, if using.
- Use your clean hands to mix well, incorporating all of the ingredients together.
- Measure out a heaped tablespoon of the mixture and roll lightly to form a ball. Repeat with the remaining mixture.
- Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. I used my cast iron, but any large skillet or non-stick skllet will work. Add the meatballs and cook until they are browned all over, about 3-4 minutes. Transfer to a plate and repeat with all the meatballs.
- Heat the sauce in the same skillet and add in the meatballs. Cook for another 5 minutes, until warmed through, Take care to stir the meatballs-- if you stir them to hard, they will likely break. Instead, scoop the sauce over the meatballs and gently turn them with a spoon.
Notes
*Grate the onion using a box grater so that you can have some of the onion juices with pieces. If you don't have a box grater, a mini prep food processor will also work. The juices of the onion are used to soak and soften the bread. Or, you can very finely chop the onion and then soak the bread in a little milk with the flaxseed.
*I use flaxseed with a little milk to help bind these meatballs together, instead of an egg. If you want a vegetarian version, you can use an egg. I tested this recipe both with flaxseed and without and couldn't taste a difference in the flaxseed version and it held up slightly better than the kind without. That said, they were both fairly firm and if you don't have flaxseed, you will be ok. You'll just want to take care when adding them to your sauce.
*The fennel adds a nice sausage-like flavor to these meatballs, but you can omit. You can use ground fennel or do what I do-- crush fennel seeds until coarsely ground, using a mortar and pestle.
*My grandma always put parmesan cheese in her meatballs and I love the salty, umami flavor it gives. You can omit it if you'd like.
*I don't think these meatballs need much extra salt, especially if you are using parmesan cheese and assuming you are serving them with a salted sauce. If you plan on serving them on their own, then I'd recommend cooking one to taste, then adding more salt as desired to your mixture, if needed.
Nutrition
Serving: 1meatball in sauceCalories: 58kcalCarbohydrates: 5gProtein: 4gFat: 3gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 1mgSodium: 305mgPotassium: 161mgFiber: 2gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 242IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 23mgIron: 1mg