Creamy Meatball Soup

I was inspired to make meatball soup at home after hubby ordered a bowl of it while we were out in town. I had never thought of using meatballs in soup before, but it was so yummy and filling I came right home and googled a meatball soup recipe. This soup sort of tastes like a grown up version of SpaghettiO's, as it combined orzo pasta with diced tomatoes and of course meatballs. It was super easy and made a huge batch! If you are only serving two people, I recommend cutting the recipe in half unless you want lots of leftovers!  

Creamy Meatball Soup
From Delicious Meliscious
Printable Version
Makes 8 single bowl servings 
Ingredients
16 meatballs - baked according to directions
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 8 ounce can tomato sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
2/3 cup fresh basil coarsely chopped
3 cups chicken stock
1 cup raw orzo cooked according to package directions
1 cup half and half
1/2 stick unsalted butter
Salt and pepper to taste
Grated Parmesan cheese for garnish
Chopped green onions for garnish, if desired

Directions
Combine diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, chicken stock, and garlic in a large stock pot or Dutch oven. Bring to a boil and simmer for fifteen minutes. Add basil. With an immersion blender, blend until smooth or desired consistency is reached (I left mine chunky)/ Add butter and half and half and whisk until well blended. Add meatball and orzo. Scoop into individual bowls and serve with Parmesan cheese and chopped green onions. 

Tangy BBQ Meatballs

I always have ground turkey in my freezer or fridge and keep an eye out for new ways to use it. I came across this recipe from Momma Hen on Tasty Kitchen and just the name "Tangy" in the title sold me. These meatballs are extremely easy and perfect for a night you just want a quick dinner. They are savory and filling. I served them over brown rice, but they would be great on their own or even as an appetizer. 

Tangy BBQ Meatballs
Thanks to Momma Hens Kitchen


Printable Version

Ingredients 


For the meatballs:
1 pound ground turkey
1 cup bread crumbs
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon basil (I used fresh)
1 tablespoon garlic, minced

For the sauce:
1 cup ketchup
1/2 cup BBQ sauce
1 teaspoon mustard
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon sugar

Directions


For the meatballs:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine ground turkey, bread crumbs, black pepper, oregano, basil, and garlic and mix well. Form into golf-ball sized meatballs and place on a greased baking pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until browned and cooked through.

For the sauce:
Mix all sauce ingredients well in s small bowl. Place meatballs and sauce in a saucepan over medium low heat. Mix well and keep warm until ready to serve.

Asian Meatballs

During my cooking blog surfing I found Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes. This fantastic cooking blog immediately made it to my favorites list because the food looked so yummy but is actually healthy! Since I started this cooking blog in November I have been so excited to make dishes that are delicious that I've thrown any concerns about calories, carbohydrates, and fat grams to the wind! Not such a good idea, especially now that bathing suit season is quickly approaching. I discovered Gina's website just in time. For each recipe she gives you the WW point value, serving size, and calories. I've tried two of her recipes now and they are not only Weight Watcher Friendly but super flavorful! You won't even notice you are eating healthy! Even if you aren't a health conscious eater go check out her website because I guarantee you will find something that grabs your attention!


These Asian Turkey Meatballs with Lime Sesame Dipping Sauce were the first recipe I tried from Gina's site. They appealed to me because of the flavor combinations: ginger, cilantro, soy sauce, sesame oil, lime. Yum yum! The meatballs turned out very moist and had a distinct Asian flavor that was very different flavor from any meatball I've ever tried. I served them with Veggie Lover's Fried Rice and with the Lime Sesame Sauce to drizzle over the meatballs and rice it was a filling and delicious meal. I will definitely be adding this one to our meal rotation. I noticed that some people commented these make great appetizers too, but you would probably want to double the recipe for a larger crowd because although the meatballs are large, the recipe only makes 12.


Asian Turkey Meatballs with Lime Sesame Dipping Sauce
From Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes

Ingredients


1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
1 1/4 pounds lean ground turkey
1 egg
1 tablespoon of ginger, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
3 scallions, chopped
1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil

Dipping Sauce


4 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons water
1 chopped fresh scallions
*I also added in 1/2 tablespoon of sesame seeds


Directions:

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Mix ground turkey, bread crumbs, egg, salt, scallions, cilantro, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, and 2 teaspoons of oil with your hands until combined. Shape 1/4 cup meat mixture into a ball and transfer to a baking dish. Repeat with remaining mixture. Bake until cooked through, about 15 minutes.

For the dipping sauce mix together lime juice, water, soy sauce, and remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a bowl. Add scallions (and sesame seeds).

Transfer meatballs to a serving dish. Stir sauce, then drizzle meatballs with 1 tablespoons sauce. Serve meatballs with remaining sauce.

Quick Turkey Swedish Meatballs

This is another recipe from the cookbook the women in my mom's family put together.  Aunt Marlene shared this recipe for Swedish Meatballs and I've made it a couple times. The husband loves it, probably because there is so much meat! This recipe simmers the meatballs in alfredo sauce, but Aunt Marlene told me she also puts the meatballs on hoagies and covers them in marina sauce for a delicious meatball sandwich. The meatballs are super easy and quick and I like them on whole wheat egg noodles, but they would be great with spaghetti or covered with BBQ sauce for an easy appetizer.

Aunt Marlene's Quick Turkey Swedish Meatballs

Ingredients:

1 20 oz package of ground turkey

1 egg

2 tablespoons of dried onion bits

1/2 cup of old fashioned oats

Dash of pepper

1 teaspoon garlic salt - I used more since we love garlic

1 teaspoon salt

Mix all together in large bowl and form into 20 meatballs

In a large heavy pan slowly heat 2 15 ounce jars of alfredo sauce (since I couldn't find mushroom alfredo sauce, I also added in 2 cans of mushrooms) Drop meatballs into sauce and simmer gently for about 30 minutes, keeping the pan covered. Turn the meatballs every 10 minutes to cook evenly.

Serve over cooked noodles or rice.

**Note: the meatballs can be made the night before for better firmness. Cover and refrigerate until ready for sauce.