Turkey Balls & Pepper Sauce

Julia Lynn's Note:

The people I work for gave this recipe to me, I am not a huge fan of ground turkey but boy did this recipe change my mind! For saucier meatballs spoon over after cooking instead of before. Serve this over rice or pasta.

• Total Time: 1 hrs 5 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 8

Yield: 24.0 meatballs

Turkey Meatballs

• 1 lb ground turkey
• 1 onion , peeled and finely chopped
• 1 small apple , peeled and grated
• 3 tablespoons breadcrumbs
• 1 egg , lightly beaten
• 2 tablespoons chopped thyme , fresh
• salt and pepper , to taste
• flour , for coating
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil , for frying

Red Pepper Sauce

• 1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 shallots , peeled and finely chopped
• 1 ½ red peppers , chopped
• 1 teaspoon tomato puree
• 3 tablespoons chopped basil , fresh
• 1 ¾ cups chicken stock
• salt and pepper , to taste

Directions:

1. For red pepper sauce: heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat, add the shallots and red peppers, and saute until soft.
2. Stir in remaining sauce ingredients and bring to a boil.
3. Simmer mixture for 15-20 minutes. Cool slightly then transfer to your blender and blend until smooth.
4. For the meatballs: Preheat oven to 350. Mix together all ingredients for the meatballs, seasoning to taste.
5. Form the mixture into about 24 walnut sized balls.
6. Spread the flour onto a plate and coat the meatballs.
7. Heat the oil in a large pan, add the meatballs, and saute until they are golden all over.
8. Transfer meatballs to a casserole and pour pepper sauce on top. (If looking for more sauce, like me, pour warm sauce on after baking instead of before. Add some chicken stock to the pan so balls wont dry out.) Bake in preheated oven 20 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked through. Enjoy!