Sea Salt Cashew Butter Chocolate Protein Bars

Ambitious Kitchen

Sea Salt Cashew Butter Chocolate Protein Bars

Incredible no bake cashew butter chocolate protein bars with a sprinkle of sea salt. These decadent bars make for a delicious post-workout snack and a satisfying treat. How’s your January going so far? Most of you know I’m starting the HGG Reset next week, but in the meantime one of my biggest tips for people [...]

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Cookie and Kate

Orange Orzo Salad with Almonds, Feta and Olives

First of all, I’m so excited that you’re so excited about the new Cookie + Kate app! I had no idea that you wanted an app so badly (why didn’t you tell me?!), but I’m happy that I have one for you now. Please tell your friends and family about the app, and I’ll add more recipes to it soon!

To celebrate, I’m sharing this fresh, bright and irresistible orzo salad recipe. It’s bursting with Mediterranean flavors—juicy orange, parsley, toasted almonds, crumbled feta and Kalamata olives.

I don’t use oranges nearly as often as I use lemon and lime, but this salad reminds me not to overlook those sweet, quiet oranges, especially while they’re in season.

This orzo salad was also a lesson in pasta salads. First lesson? You must rinse the pasta immediately after cooking it so it doesn’t get sticky and lopsided. Adding some of the starchy cooking water to the dressing adds body to the salad, while keeping the oil content in check.

Let the salad marinate for at least 10 minutes, so flavors have time to meld and the pasta has time to absorb some of the moisture. It doesn’t taste all that special until it’s had a little rest, and then it tastes spectacular. Trust me! (And don’t worry, all of this is included in the recipe below.)

Continue to the recipe...

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A Sweet Pea Chef

Healthy Chicken Meatballs With Sautéed Zucchini | Easy Weeknight Dinner!

These healthy chicken meatballs make a great weeknight meal. These easy baked chicken meatballs are gluten-free (no breadcrumbs), clean eating, and paleo!

I’m always on the lookout for new, healthy recipes that I can share on this blog, include in a weekly meal plan in No-Fail Meals, or just add to my family’s weeknight dinner rotation.

And I SO love it when I find high protein, clean meals that everyone enjoys.

This Healthy Chicken Meatballs meal is definitely one of those keeper recipes.

What I like so much about these baked chicken meatballs is that they are flavorful, moist, and a great change of pace – both for chicken and for meatballs.  They also bake super quickly in the oven and don’t require a lot of prep work.  Winner!

How to Make Chicken Meatballs Moist

Dry meatballs are no fun and such a shame.  Here are some easy tips for how to fix dry meatballs and make them moist and juicy instead:

Add moisture: The meat by itself will shrink when cooked. Add eggs and almond meal to help keep the meatballs tender and moist, but don’t add too much or it will make the meatballs spongy. Gently form the meatballs: If the meatballs are packed too tightly, they can wind up being tough and chewy. Don’t spend too much time forming the meatballs – make them quickly and gently. Use an ice cream scoop: Make the meatballs as uniform as possible so they all bake evenly (which means you don’t have some overcook while waiting for others to finish cooking). Don’t overcook.  Ground chicken is great for making meatballs, but can become dry if overcooked.  Make sure to pay close attention to the meatballs as they bake so you don’t overcook them.

Follow these steps and you’ll be on your way to making moist meatballs.

How to Make Chicken Meatballs… …Without Breadcrumbs

One of the biggest culprits for many meatball recipes is the use of breadcrumbs.  Breadcrumbs are usually made from white, highly processed bread and contain very little nutritional value.  Instead, I like to replace breadcrumbs with almond meal (AKA almond flour) in my meatballs.  The ratio is 1:1 so you use the same amount of almond meal as you would breadcrumbs.

Adding in the almond meal adds nutrient dense almonds, fiber, and protein to the meatballs and also makes them paleo, clean eating, and gluten-free.

…With Breadcrumbs

If you’re looking for a clean chicken meatball recipe, but you don’t have or can’t find almond meal, you can also sub breadcrumbs with homemade Ezekial breadcrumbs – just pop a couple slices in the toaster and then break or blend them into crumbles.  That way, you’ll have whole wheat, fresh breadcrumbs.

I know – did I just blow your mind?  Healthy homemade breadcrumbs are totally a thing 🙂

How to Make Chicken Meatballs Ahead of Time

Making chicken meatballs ahead of time is a great way to save time during the week.  You can either store the meatballs in the fridge or the freezer when made ahead.  Here’s how you can do it:

Storing Chicken Meatballs in the Refrigerator

I recommend following through with the baking of the meatballs before storing in the refrigerator to avoid having raw chicken in your fridge.  Plus the meatballs may lose their shape if not cooked.  You can store them in a sealable plastic bag or meal prep container that is air-tight.  Properly stored, cooked meatballs will last for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator. Storing any longer would require you to freeze your chicken meatballs (see below for how to freeze meatballs).

Storing Chicken Meatballs in the Refrigerator

To freeze the meatballs, allow them to cool completely and then place on a baking sheet, lined with parchment paper, into the freezer to completely freeze.  Make sure to allow space between the meatballs so they don’t stick.  Once frozen, the meatballs can be stored in a freezer safe sealable plastic bag or s freezer safe container.  Frozen meatballs will last in the freezer for 3-4 months.

Healthy Chicken Meatballs

P.S. You’ve gotta try these baked chicken meatballs with the sauteed zucchini.  It’s the perfect combo.  The zucchini and red onion is a little sweet while the meatballs are a savory and have a little crunch to them from baking in the oven and the almond meal.  Yum!

Healthy Chicken Meatballs

These healthy chicken meatballs make a great weeknight meal. They are baked, gluten-free (no breadcrumbs), clean eating, and paleo!

For the Chicken Meatballs: 1 lb ground chicken breast 1/2 cup almond meal 1 tbsp Italian parsley, (chopped) 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, (grated) 1/2 tsp sea salt 1/4 tsp ground black pepper 1/4 tsp garlic powder 1 egg For The Sautéed Zucchini: 1 tbsp olive oil 1/2 red onion, (thinly sliced) 3 zucchini, (sliced into 1/4-inch slices) 1 tsp sea salt 1/2 tsp ground black pepper 1/4 tsp garlic powder

To make the meatballs, preheat your oven to 425 degrees F and grease the bottom of a baking dish with olive oil, then set aside. In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground chicken, almond meal, chopped Italian parsley, grated parmesan, sea salt, pepper, garlic powder, and egg and mix very well. Using your hands, form the mixture into 2-inch meatballs. Place the meatballs into the baking dish, separating them a little bit so they can evenly bake. Put into the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, until almost cooked through, and then turn the oven to broil for 3-5 minutes to create a crispy, golden-brown top. To make the zucchini, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Add thinly sliced red onion and cook for 2-3 minutes, until it starts to sweat. Add the sliced zucchini, sea salt, pepper, and garlic powder and stir to combine. Cover and cook for 6-8 minutes, or until zucchini is just tender, but not falling apart.

Something to consider if you don’t like your sautéed zucchini super mushy and more like zucchini stew than zucchini slices: Don’t cook the zucchini all the way through.  You should be taking the zucchini off the heat once they are about one minute past being tender.  You’ll want to cook at a higher heat to get them cooked quicker so as not to get all mushy.  Plus, slice all the zucchini as evenly as possible so they all cook evenly.

This post contains affiliate links for products I use regularly and highly recommend.

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