It consisted of green peppers that had been filled with a filling consisting of brown rice, almonds, dried cranberries, tofu, and cheese. This was my first vegetarian recipe. To make a delicious vegan dish, replace the Parmesan with soy cheese.
| Prep Time: | 30 mins |
| Cook Time: | 50 mins |
| Total Time: | 1 hr 20 mins |
| Servings: | 20 |
| Yield: | 40 meat balls |
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 1 cup bread crumbs
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoons grated onion
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 (16 ounce) can jellied cranberry sauce (such as Ocean Spray®)
- 1 ½ cups ketchup
- 2 ½ tablespoons packed brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
- Mix ground beef, bread crumbs, parsley, eggs, grated onion, soy sauce, and garlic powder in a bowl until thoroughly combined. Pinch off about 2 teaspoons of meat mixture per meatball and roll into small meatballs. Arrange meatballs in a large, deep baking dish.
- Bake in the preheated oven until meatballs are browned, about 25 minutes. Drain excess grease.
- Combine jellied cranberry sauce, ketchup, brown sugar, and lemon juice in a saucepan and place over medium heat. Stir the sauce until cranberry sauce has melted and brown sugar has dissolved.
- Pour the sauce over meatballs and bake until sauce forms a glaze and meatballs are no longer pink inside, 25 to 30 more minutes.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 168 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 19 g |
| Cholesterol | 46 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 1 g |
| Protein | 9 g |
| Saturated Fat | 2 g |
| Sodium | 371 mg |
| Sugars | 15 g |
| Fat | 6 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
Really good. Made for dinner tonight, served with Basmati rice and a mixture of broccoli/peppers/peas and carrots. Used ground turkey rather than beef. Added a splash of sweet chili sauce and a squeeze of fresh OJ to the sauce. Will definitely make again for appetizers or a main dish
Great make ahead with homemade meatballs. My son could tell. He ate eight of them. Followed recipe exactly and would possibly increase amount of sauce if I changed anything
My husband called these the best meatballs ever. I increased the spices as other cooks suggested and I used 1/4 cup of chili sauce in place of that much ketchup. I mixed ground lamb and beef because that’s what I had. I had whole-berry cranberry sauce but mixed the sauce in my processor and it worked perfectly.
I made these using a jar of chili sauce in place of the ketchup and dry parsley instead of fresh because I can’t stand fresh parsley. Everything else I followed exact. Everyone loved them!
Put these in the slow cooker after baked in the oven at 350 for 15min . Made with grape jelly and added a bit more brown sugar. They were perfect served over white rice
It was OK, but would make it easier to just put meatballs in a sweet and sour sauce or teriyaki sauce. Used frozen Italian meatballs . Probably won’t make again.
I made 6lb. for a Super Bowl party. Not a meatball left and they mopped up the sauce!
This is a great recipe. The changes I made were slight and my preferences only. * I used a a mix of beef, veal, and pork for my meatballs, 1/3 each for the 2lbs. * Rather than grate the onions, I chopped mine fine and sauteed with a touch of olive oil. Then mixed in with the meat mixture. Otherwise, I followed the meatballs recipe. For the sauce, I just added a small cup of O.J. and a little extra splash o f lemon juice. to kick up the citrus. I will likely make these again.
I didn’t change a thing and my kids loved them.
Delicious
Very nice appetizer for NYE !
these are very good with a few minor adjustments. The meatballs as written are bland. I pinched off a tsp of it and microwaved just to check the amt of flavor. I adjusted to taste and must say that the texture was very fluffy, so the ratio of meat to breadcrumbs is spot on. The sauce again had to be tweaked. It was a bit one-dimensional as written and I could taste the ketchup a bit more than I would have liked. I added a bit of orange zest to the sauce, and added a can of crushed pineapple. The other reason I added more liquid was that it seemed like there would not be quite enough sauce for the amt of meat; especially if one wanted to keep these warm in a crockpot; would be too afraid of scorching or burning. With tweaking, this is a nice recipe and again, the ratio of breadcrumb to meat produces a nice fluffy meatball. I don’t however see how this could be eaten as a main course ‘over rice’, as it is very sweet. I may even cut back a tad on the amt of brown sugar next time.
Sent them off to a party all were eaten
These meatballs are a little bland in my opinion. I wouldn’t make them again. Maybe you could add a spice/herb to brighten the flavor.
These meatballs are amazing. I make them for work pot lucks and everyone goes nuts. I make them at home with mashed potatoes for my meat and potatoes husband. I didn’t change a thing. Great for the crock pot too.
This is an excellent recipe. I enjoy it followed as is. I ALSO think it tastes great when cutting corners/saving time using a bag of frozen meatballs. Have gotten positive remarks and requests for the recipe whenever I bring it to a ‘covered dish’/pot luck event.
Made as written. Meatballs were heavy and lacked flavor, sauce tasted like ketchup. Just not that great. Won’t make again.
Yummy. I used more brown sugar. Served for lunch with garlic bread.
Very tasty. I received many compliments from party guests.
Added sweet baby rays bbq sauce
Simple recipe and absolutely delicious! I wiill make this recipe often!