Y’know those fully-cooked ground chicken sausages and meatballs that you can find in almost every grocery store?  There are any number of brands that now make them…plus they come in quite a variety of flavor variations.  You can find breakfast sausages, dinner sausages, mini-sausages, and meatballs.  I have been a big fan of these for quite some time now.  Of course, there is ‘variety’ in quality amongst the different brands, too. You probably wouldn’t have to search too hard to find organic chicken sausages and meatballs.  All very helpful towards a healthy eating lifestyle! And they are so handy for those nights when your meal plan falls apart (or you forgot to take something out of the freezer)! These even defrost right in their package in a bowl of cold water for 10-15 minutes!

But recently I had the crazy thought, ‘Why can’t I do that? I should be able to make my own, right?’ And then I found it that wasn’t really so crazy!  Easy to find the ingredients…easy to throw together…easy to prepare…easy to cook!  And here’s the best part—making them from scratch in your own kitchen, the variety’s are almost endless.  But I started fairly simple…check out the recipe!  The variety I made this time lent itself well to serving with some Tzatziki (zah-d/zee-kee) Sauce (Greek yogurt cucumber sauce) alongside some spaghetti squash and steamed broccoli…yum!  I would love to hear about your version, if you decide to make them.  Enjoy!

Homemade Chicken Meatballs—Greek Style

ingredients:
meatballs:
2 (10 ounce) boxes frozen chopped spinach
1 tablespoon +/- olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 heaping tablespoons chopped garlic
1 egg, lightly beaten
(2) 4 ounce pkg. crumbled feta cheese (set aside 2 ounces or so)
2# ground chicken (or ½ chicken, ½ turkey)
2 tablespoons lemon-pepper blend
1/4 cup almond flour

tzatziki sauce:
1+1/2 cups Greek-style plain yogurt
1/2-1 teaspoon garlic, finely minced
1/3 seedless cucumber, peeled and chopped small
3 tablespoons fresh dill (or 2 teaspoons dried)
1/2 lemon, juiced
sea salt, freshly ground pepper (to taste)

directions:

• mix up the tzatziki sauce and refrigerate ’til ready to serve
• preheat oven to 400; line a baking sheet w/parchment paper
• cook frozen spinach (stovetop or microwave) just ‘til heated through; drain excess liquid, dump out onto a clean dishtowel and squeeze dry; set aside
• preheat the oven to 400 degrees F
• in a large bowl combine onion and garlic; add egg
• add the spinach, pulling it apart to separate it
• add feta, chicken, and seasoning to the bowl
• dust the almond flour over top
• start combining and add a 1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil
• lightly mix everything ‘til well-combined
• using a 1+1/2″ cookie scoop, or something similar, form 36-40 meatballs; they do not have to be perfectly round…I left mine fairly rustic
• place the meatballs on the lined baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes and then turn them over
• cook for additional 8-10 minutes (depending on the size of them) ‘til they are beginning to brown
• I used my instant-read meat thermometer (165 degrees for poultry); you can also test them by poking one and making sure the juices run clear
• serve with tzatziki sauce and a sprinkle of the leftover feta cheese

I know I often mention that I use ‘lemon-pepper seasoning’ in the place of salt&pepper.  Here is a link to what I use.

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God loves you!  ♥  (Don’t ever forget that!)

♥  coleen