Meatballs are probably one of the things that vegetarians should give up, but apparently we don’t want to. (A Google search for “meatless meatballs” or “vegetarian meatballs” yields quite a few hits and I never have trouble finding them frozen at my co-op.) And really, despite the name, there are a lot of other good things you can put in meatballs – nuts, cheese, herbs, bread crumbs, eggs – and once you’ve got all of those ingredients in the bowl, it’s easy to forget the meat.
One of my favorite recipes – it makes the family holiday party buffet each year – is the meatless meatball recipe I found years ago in a newspaper. It makes a sweet and tangy meatball, and once they’ve been baked, they can be kept warm in a slow cooker. My meat-loving family enjoys them (and a few members insist that they taste like they have meat, which I think is a compliment?). I like to skip the parsley flakes, but I add 1 tablespoon of basil and 1 and 1/2 teaspoons rosemary instead. If you’re looking for a New Year’s Eve party appetizer, these would be a good bet.
Vegetarian Meatballs
3/4 cup ground walnuts
1 and 1/4 cup crushed saltines
4 eggs
3 and 1/2 cups shredded cheese (cheddar, mozzarella, colby, etc. – I like to mix whatever I have on hand)
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 and 1/2 teaspoons sage
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons parsley flakes (I use 1 tablespoon basil and 1.5 teaspoons rosemary)
2 cloves garlic, minced
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix all of the ingredients together and form into balls. Place in a 9 by 13 pan (I usually need an additional, small baking dish for extra meatballs). Pour Apricot Sweet & Sour Sauce (see below) over the meatballs, and bake for 30 minutes.
Apricot Sweet & Sour Sauce
Combine in a saucepan and bring to a boil:
3/4 cup apricot jam
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup oil
1/2 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons grated onion
2 tablespoons oregano
2 tablespoons brown sugar