Cranberry Meatballs

This is a wonderful recipe that I made for my cookie exchange.  I admit that I cheated and used premade meatballs but I will definitely make it again using the actual meatball recipe.  The recipe was sent to me by a FB friend.  Thank you, Miss C!

Cranberry Meatballs

Meatballs:

½ cup cream (or beer)

1 1/2 cups fine breadcrumbs

1 lb. each lean ground beef and ground pork

1 medium onions finely chopped

2 eggs

1-1/2 tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

¼ tsp nutmeg

¼ tsp allspice

Mix all ingredients together and form into balls.  Place on cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 20 mins., then turn pan (not the meatballs) and cook for 10 more.  When cool, meatballs can be frozen.

Sauce:

1 can whole berry cranberry sauce

1 large bottle chili sauce

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 tbsp brown sugar

1 tsp dry mustard

In a crock pot mix all ingredients together, turn on low heat and add meatballs.  Cook all day on low.

Enjoy!

Albondigas - Mexican Meatballs

I am aware that Mexico is not part of our Southwest but you have to admit that southwestern cuisine is very much influenced by Mexico and Mexican flavors. I thought this recipe would be a good addition to Southwestern week. So here goes. . .

This is a recipe that I have had in my possession for quite a while but I haven't tried yet. I figure that if I go ahead and post it on this blog, I'll finally make it. I found the recipe in the July 8, 2008 issue of Woman's Day Magazine. That is how long I've been holding onto it. I'm going to also include a recipe for Enchilada Sauce because after reading the ingredients on a few cans/jars of this stuff, I'm not happy with the ingredients. Emeril's recipe looks straight forward and easy so I'm going to try it instead of a jar of sauce with these meatballs.

If you have every tried these, please let me know how you like them. They sound yummy to me.

ALBONDIGAS

12 oz lean ground pork
1/2 cup grated zucchini
1/2 cup crushed tortilla chips
1/4 cup each chopped scallions and cilantro
1 egg
1 teaspoon each minced garlic, ground cumin and dried oregano

Roll into 24 meatballs. Brown in a little oil in a large nonstick skillet. Add a 15 oz. can tomato sauce or (for more heat) a 10 oz can enchilada sauce. Cover; simmer 5 minutes or until meatballs are cooked.

Serves 4

Emeril's Easy Enchilada Sauce


3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon flour
1/4 cup chili powder
2 cups chicken stock
10 ounces tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

In a medium saucepan heat oil, add flour, smoothing and stirring with a wooden spoon. Cook for 1 minute. Add chili powder and cook for 30 seconds. Add stock, tomato paste, oregano, and cumin. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes. The sauce will thicken and smooth out. Adjust the seasonings. Serve atop your favorite enchiladas.

Southwestern Recipe Week

Hey, I'm back from outerspace! I finally got the energy and time to do another post. I have had a few Southwestern recipes that I have been wanting to post. About a month ago, I went to the last Wining Women event in my neighborhood and the theme was the Southwest. The person who was hosting didn't know (until she went to the liquor store) that Maryland does not import wines from the Southwest. Instead, she chose wines from South America. They were very good wines. I don't particularly care for dry red wines but there were a few sweeter wines and several whites that I liked. She kept the food theme to the Southwestern United States so I brought a really tasty dish called Enchilada Meatballs. My niece who lives in Arizona sent the recipe to me. We ate those meatballs for dinner and I brought some to the Wining Women event. The recipe makes a lot of meatballs. They are yummy.

Enchilada Meatballs
from Taste of Home

Servings: 48

Ingredients:

2 cups crumbled corn bread
1 can (10 ounces) enchilada sauce, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 pounds ground beef
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
1/2 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine the corn bread, 1/2 cup enchilada sauce and salt. Crumble beef over mixture; mix well. Shape into 1-in. meatballs.

Place meatballs on a greased rack in a shallow baking pan. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 18-22 minutes or until meat is no longer pink; drain.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, heat tomato sauce and remaining enchilada sauce. Drain meatballs; place in a serving dish. Top with sauce and sprinkle with cheese. Serve with toothpicks. Yield: about 4-1/2 dozen.

Enjoy!

The Creative Cook

Tuesday Morning Tidbits

Now, for the rest of the story. But first let me explain that the reason I had no idea that there was ground beef in my fridge instead of a pot roast is because my freezer is not very organized. I could have marked and labeled everything but that would eliminate the need for me to be the "Creative Cook" and I would become the "Boring Cook" or something like that. Well, I still had lots of ground beef to deal with and I couldn't put it back into the freezer since it was already thawed completely so I searched some more and found another great recipe on http://www.recipezaar.com/. It comes from the "Kissing Cook" and it is called (Drumroll Please) Awesome Meatballs. I have to say that the Kissing Cook is correct when she says that the fresh breadcrumbs soaked in milk make all the difference. Oh well, you'll see.

AWESOME MEATBALLS

Ingredients

2 eggs, beaten
2 cups fresh breadcrumbs, soaked in
1 cup milk
1 cup shallots, minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup snipped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 lb meatloaf mixture(ground pork, veal, beef)
1 lb ground beef or ground turkey

Directions

1. In a small frying pan, place 1-2 T. oil in pan. Saute on a medium heat the shallots and garlic until lightly brown and transparent.

2. In a large mixing bowl, combine eggs, soft breadcrumbs parsely, salt and pepper, thyme and parmesan cheese and milk together. Let stand so breadcrumbs can absorb milk. Add sauted shallots and garlic and then add meat mixture. Mix, but don't overmix.

3. Form into meatballs and place on a jelly roll pan lined with foil (I use Release Foil, so I don't have to spray with a non-stick spray - if you don't have Release Foil, spray your foil with non-stick spray).

4. Place meatballs in 350 degree oven for approximately 20-25 minutes. Let cool on wire rack and either place in freezer container or use as needed.

5. Yield - 48 meatballs.

I substituted onions for shallots because I don't keep a ready supply of shallots in my house, do you? And once again, I used ground turkey instead of veal. I think the mixture of meats makes the meatballs really excellent along with the fresh breadcrumbs. My other taste-tester (my husband Bill) has enjoyed the meatballs very much. Please let me know what you think of these recipes.

Until tomorrow!

The Creative Cook