Paleo Meatballs

These may take a little longer to make than some meals, but they are great reheated and they freeze well. So make a large batch when you have some time and they will be ready to go when you’re in a hurry. It’s worth noting that marinara sauce is a great place to sneak in a lot of vegetables, whether for yourself or for picky kids. It’s also impossible to find in the store without sugar, so I always make my own.

For the Marinara:

2 TBSP Olive Oil

2 small cloves garlic, crushed or finely diced

1 large onion, diced

3 cups of any diced veggies you like (mushrooms, peppers, eggplant, zucchini are all good)

2 – 28 oz cans crushed tomatoes*

2 – 14 oz cans diced tomatoes*

2 tsp Italian seasoning

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (or more if you like spicy)

salt & pepper to taste

*Make sure to read ingredients on your canned tomatoes. You’ll notice many of them have sugar added

For the meatballs:

1 lb ground pork

1 lb ground turkey

1 lb ground veal (you can use ground beef if you can’t find the veal)

3 eggs

1/3 cup fresh italian parsley, finely chopped

1.5 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

Heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and saute for until it starts to get soft. Add garlic and saute for about two minutes until it begins to brown. Add any other veggies you chose and saute 5 – 7 minutes. (add additional olive oil at this point if you need it)

Add the rest of sauce ingredients. Cover and bring to a simmer. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary. Continue to simmer on medium low heat while making the meatballs.

For the meatballs, add all ingredients into a large bowl. Mix with hands until everything is well combined. Roll mixture into balls (about golf ball size) and drop them into marinara. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes.

In the picture above I served these over speghetti squash. You can also eat them by themselves or even in a lettuce wrap.

Enjoy!