Baked Turkey And Spinach Meatballs With Orzo Recipes

BAKED TURKEY AND SPINACH MEATBALLS WITH ORZO

Steps:

• Position a rack in the upper third of the oven; preheat to 425˚ F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine half of the spinach, the onion and garlic in a food processor; pulse to make a coarse paste. Transfer all but 1/4 cup of the paste to a large bowl.
• Add the turkey, panko, egg and 1/4 cup Parmesan to the bowl. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper and mix to combine. Form into 12 meatballs and place on the baking sheet.
• Bake the meatballs until golden and cooked through, about 15 minutes. Switch the oven to broil and broil the meatballs until browned on top, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the orzo and artichokes and cook, stirring, until lightly toasted, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the reserved 1/4 cup spinach paste, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper; stir to coat the orzo. Pour in the chicken broth, bring to a simmer, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the broth is absorbed and the orzo is saucy but still al dente, about 10 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water and the remaining spinach; bring to a simmer, uncovered. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the spinach wilts but is still bright green, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan.
• Divide the orzo among shallow bowls. Top with the meatballs.

BAKED TURKEY MEATBALLS WITH SPINACH

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Prepare a large baking sheet by spraying with cooking spray. I actually line my baking sheet with foil and then spray with cooking spray.
• In a frying pan on medium heat, heat olive oil until hot. Then add onion, garlic, salt, pepper, thyme, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Sauté until onion is tender (about 5-6 minutes total time).
• Add spinach to pan and combine with onion mixture. Add Worcestershire sauce and chicken broth and mix well to combine. Cook until most of the liquid has cooked out (evaporated). I don't have much liquid in my pan after I combine all these, but it will depend on how well you drained your spinach. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
• In a large bowl, combine the turkey, bread crumbs, and egg. Add cooled onion/spinach mixture to the meat. I do all of this step with my hands, but you can use a spoon if you prefer.
• With your hands, create meatballs that are about 1 - 1 1/2 inches in diameter and place them on the baking sheet. Leave a little bit of space between each meatball. When you are done shaping your meatballs, you will probably have about 40-42 meatballs from this recipe. Don't need that many? Freeze them after baking or cut this recipe in half (but I say freeze them and then you've done the work only once and have a future meal).
• Bake until your meatballs are cooked through with an internal temperature of 160 degrees F - which was about 20 minutes for my oven. Remove from oven and serve as desired.