Another NY Times stunner over here. These meatballs are meant to be made with pork, but I couldn’t find ground pork so I went with ground turkey instead. I actually think the turkey helps the ricotta really shine so so not stress if you don’t feel like using pork.
Preheat the oven to 425 and make your meatballs by combining 1 lb ground turkey (or pork), 1/2 c. parmesan, 1/2 c. ricotta, 1/2 c. breadcrumbs, 1 egg, and salt and pepper. I also added in crushed red pepper (maybe 1/4 tsp? I didn’t measure) and highly recommend it. Form into 16 meatballs, place on a lined baking sheet, and cook for 15 minutes. DONE.
I served the meatballs over roasted zucchini with some marinara and extra cheese. I did NOT miss the spaghetti here, something I very rarely (never?) say. Side note: The zucchini came out way better than expected. I sprinkled some random seasonings on there but it ended up being a perfect combo. I drizzled zucchini slices with avocado oil (since it has a higher smoke point and the oven was set to 425 for the meatballs – didn’t want to set off the smoke alarm) and then tossed with garlic powder, salt, white pepper, thyme, and a smidge of truffle oil. So much amazing flavor.
You truly can’t complain about a meal that takes 20 minutes start to finish – including prep, cook time, and clean up. Also, the meatballs reheated really well – that ricotta does WONDERS. They honestly didn’t even need sauce or pasta. I was more than happy to eat them plain. My beau loves the frozen turkey meatballs from Trader Joes. I agree, those are good, but these even better – they’ve taken the crown.
Peaches to Apples 