Ground Chicken and Zucchini Meatballs (no wheat, egg or dairy)

The grand kids are coming...the grand kids are coming. As I don't want to be stuck in the kitchen all day, making up a batch of healthy meatballs that didn't include any of the long list of foods the youngest is currently not tolerating was a no-brainer.  Once done, they were tucked in a bag in a single layer so I could pull out a few at a time and frozen.

Easiest for me was to start with a basic recipe and then sub out the ingredients that I couldn't use.  The oat flakes where change to quinoa flakes. The egg was replaced with one tablespoon of Bob's Red Mill Egg Replacement and 2 tablespoons of water.  Outside of that, I followed along as it was written, well except for skipping the 1/4 tsp of one seasoning.

The uncooked mix was really moist and very sticky to work with.  Instead of rolling nice round balls, I had to shape them with wet fingers into as close a round shape as possible. They ended up a bit spiny. I think they look like the old porcupine balls my mum used to make when I was a kid, only not in tomato sauce. 

I suspect the grandkids will eat them with a sauce to dip them in - ketchup, cheese sauce or ???  Who knows. My hope is simply that they will eat them despite the spiky shape. HAHAHAH.  

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Ground Chicken and Zucchini Meatballs (no wheat, egg or dairy)

Ingredients - 

1-½ C            Grated zucchini

1 lb.               Ground chicken or ground turkey
½ C               Quinoa flakes
½ tsp             Onion powder
½ T                Italian seasoning
½ tsp             Sea salt
½ tsp             Garlic powder
½ C               Nutritional Yeast
1 T                Bob's Red Mill Egg Replacement

2 T                Water

Instructions - 

Preheat your oven to 400℉.

Place grated zucchini in several layers of paper towel or a clean dish rag. Squeeze out as much moisture as you can. Place it in a large bowl and add the rest of the ingredients.  Mix until fully combined. 

Drop by large tablespoons onto a large prepared baking sheet that has been lined with parchment paper. The recipe says golf ball size. Mine were a little smaller I think. Roll or shape with your fingers into as round as you can make it. 

NOTE - my mixture was very moist and sticky so I had to wet my hands and they didn't come out smooth. Next time I will refrigerate for 30 minutes so see if that helps and I can roll them into smoother balls. 

Bake for 18-20 minutes or until meat is cooked through. I popped these into the freezer in a single layer so I could pull out a few as needed for the grandkids while they are here.