Veggie Loaded Meatballs with Sweet Potato Tomato Sauce

If you’re like me, having a quick and nourishing protein rich meal on the table in less than 30 minutes is pretty darn critical if you’re a busy parent. These meatballs are one of my favorite recipes to turn to because they are wonderful for meal prep (if that’s your thing!)they taste amazing and freeze well to boot! If' I have time earlier in the day I’ll prep the meatballs during nap time and then cook them off in the evening. However, these do come together quickly if you do everything at once. One of the things I like about these meatballs is that the veggies and meat are all pulsed in the food processor so everything ends up being a similar texture. This makes them really easy for a beginner eater to gnaw on (I’m looking at all of you with young babies!) but also awesome for older kids because these are moist and jam packed with flavor. Our whole family loves these and I hope you all do too! We sometimes serve these meatballs over pasta but recently Pepper (my oldest daughter) is really into condiments and “dipping” her food so we serve these on a plate with the sauce on the side and usually have some steamed broccoli or cauliflower as our side.

Another thing I love about this recipe as that I was able to jam more veggies into the sauce with the addition of the sweet potato. I used homemade canned tomato sauce from last season at our farm but if you’re using store-bought tomato sauce try and look for a sugar free brand. The sweet potato is chopped and simmered with the sauce before it gets pureed together. It’s simple and delicious!

Flavor aside, I’m going to break down the awesome nutrient profile of this meal so you know what you’re little one is getting when they eat these tasty bites.

Ground beef includes a variety of essential vitamins and minerals that our children need to thrive. Beef offers high quality protein, fat, iron, zinc, choline, selenium and vitamins b6 and b12, which are essential for growth and development in babies and children.

Carrots are extremely high in antioxidants and offer a variety of vitamins and minerals. One serving of carrots offers 73% of your daily value of vitamin A!

Arugula is another vegetable high in antioxidants which help to protect the body from a verity of viruses and disease. It has anti-inflammatory properties and is loaded with vitamin K which is important for bone health (especially in young growing kiddos!)

Tomatoes are a great source of fiber and contain many important vitamins and minerals including vitamin C, potassium, Vatamin K and folate.

Sweet Potatoes are chock full of fiber and contain a good amount of vitamins A and C. Sweet potatoes are thought to have cancer fighting properties and may promote immune function and gut health.

So now that we have covered the health benefits of these meatballs and sauce lets get to the recipe!

I hope you and your family love these meatballs as much as we do.

Veggie Loaded Meatballs

PREP TIME: 15 MINUTES    COOK TIME: 20 MINUTES    SERVES: 20 meatballs

Meatballs

• 1/2 cup carrots, chopped

• 1/2 cup arugula 

• 1 small onion, chopped

• 1 teaspoon dried thyme

• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano 

• 1/2 cup almond flour or breadcrumbs

• 1 pound ground beef

• 1 egg

• 2 tablespoons milk

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 cup mozzarella or cheddar cheese

Sweet Potato Tomato Sauce

• One 14oz jar of tomato sauce (homemade or store-bought)

• 1 small sweet potato, diced (no need to peel)

• salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 400F. Lightly grease a baking sheet and set it aside.

2. Place carrots, arugula and onion in the food processor. Pulse until finely chopped. Add the rest of the ingredients. Form into 2 Tablespoon size meatballs. Bake for 20 minutes or until cooked through!

3. Prepare the sauce by simmering the tomato sauce with the chopped sweet potato (if your tomato sauce isn’t well season feel free to add some dried herbs to taste). Once the sweet potato is tender (about 15 minutes) use an immersion blender to puree the sweet potato into the sauce. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Serve the meatballs with the sauce and enjoy!

Notes

Meatballs can be stored in the fridge for 3 days or freezer for up to 3 months.