I found a recipe for Turkey-Spinach Meatballs on Bon Appetit’s website on the weekend and decided to make them for dinner the other night. This is a great weeknight recipe because there’s not a whole lot to do in terms of preparation, and the entire process takes about 40 minutes.
I used the Bon Appetit recipe, which is actually by Dinner: A Love Story’s Jenny Rosenstrach and Andy Ward, as a starting point and made modifications along the way. I didn’t have a few of the ingredients (like fennel seeds and parsley) and to accommodate my wheat-free dining companion, I omitted the breadcrumbs in the meatballs. I’ve made meatballs with and without breadcrumbs in the past, and the only major difference is usually the size and the density of the meatballs. This was my second time making turkey meatballs (I usually use beef), and I really loved it as a lighter option for summertime dinners.
Here’s my adaptation of Bon Appetit’s Turkey-Spinach Meatballs.
Ingredients
- 1 onion
- 4 cloves of garlic
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon red chili pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 28-ounce can of whole peeled tomatoes
- 1 egg
- 1½ pounds lean ground turkey
- 1 10-ounce pack of frozen spinach, thawed
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
The Bon Appetit recipe requires cooking the meatballs under the broiler setting for about 15 minutes, but I decided to use the bake setting in the oven instead. The main difference is that my meatballs didn’t brown as much, but I was fine with that since they would be covered in Marinara sauce anyways.
To make the meatballs the same way that I did, start by preheating the oven to 400F.
As always, I like to set up my mise en place first. Cut the onion in half, and dice one-half of the onion quite finely. This will be for the meatballs and you can place those onion pieces into a large mixing bowl. Roughly dice the other half of the onion. This is for the Marinara sauce. Mince the 4 cloves of garlic, and place have of it into the meatball bowl, and save the other half for the sauce.
Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, sauté the onions you had reserved for the sauce. When the onions are translucent and slightly tender but not brown, add the minced garlic, oregano, and chili flakes. Cook this for about a minute until the garlic and chili release their aromas.
Stir in the tomato paste and 1 tablespoon of water. The tomato paste should coat the onions and begin to darken. Meanwhile, open the can of tomatoes, and using a clean pair of scissors, roughly chop the whole tomatoes while they’re still in the can. Add the tomatoes and the juice in the can to the pot, bring the mixture to a boil, and reduce the heat slightly to allow the Marinara sauce to simmer for about 20 minutes.
Add salt and pepper to taste, and now you can work on your meatballs.
Beat the egg in a small bowl before adding it to the bowl of onions and garlic. Add the ground turkey and spinach, and grate the parmesan cheese and about a teaspoon of fresh lemon zest into the bowl. Combine all of the ingredients using your hands.
Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, and using your hands, roll the mixture into 12-or-so meatballs that are about ¼ cup in size. Place the meatballs into the oven for 20 minutes.
The meatballs and sauce will be done around the same time. To check that your meatballs are fully cooked, simply cut one of the larger ones open. Since these meatballs are pretty small, 20 minutes in the oven should be plenty.
To serve, transfer the meatballs onto a plate and ladle the Marinara sauce over top. I liked the combination of spinach, turkey, and parmesan cheese. The meatballs held together well, even without breadcrumbs, because of the cheese. Overall, however, they’re much lighter than beef or lamb meatballs. The Marinara sauce has a nice kick to it, and adds some pizazz to meatballs. It would also make a very delicious sauce for pasta or chicken.
