Whether you’re veggie, vegan or just flexi, these mouthwatering no-meat balls are giving Sunday dinner vibes. Add to a steaming plate of spaghetti and top with your favourite Bolognese sauce or use to create the veggie meatball sub of your dreams.
For more recipes like this one, check out the recipe book, Protein Plates.
Nourishing No-Meat Balls
- Servings
- 30 meatballs
- Prep Time
- 20 minutes
- Cook Time
- 40 minutes
Ingredients
- 200 g dried lentils
- 1 large brown onion
- 350 g mixed mushrooms
- 2 cloves garlic
- 150 g walnuts
- 2 tbsp milled or ground flaxseed (mixed with 4 tbsp water)
- 3 tbsp sunflower oil
- 3 tbsp fresh parsley (finely chopped)
- 1 tbsp sage
- 1 tbsp Italian herbs
- Pinch salt and pepper
- 1 can cannellini beans (drained and rinsed)
- A couple of sprays low-calorie cooking spray
Instructions
Soak the lentils the night before for best results. On the day of cooking, rinse, drain and boil until tender, approximately 20 minutes.
Prepare all the vegetables — peel and dice the onion, wash and cut the mushrooms into small pieces, and crush the garlic.
Roughly chop the walnuts so they are a similar size to the vegetable pieces.
Mix the ground flaxseed with water in a small bowl and set aside to thicken — this will be used to bind the mixture together.
In a big dry pan, add the chopped walnuts and dry roast them for several minutes to unlock the flavour and make them crunchier. Then transfer to a bowl and let them cool.
In the same pan, heat 3 tablespoons of cooking oil. Add the onions and cook until caramelised. Take your time and let the onions gradually release their sweetness – cook on a low heat for the best flavour.
Once the onions are soft and deep brown in colour, add the mushrooms. Cook until soft and fragrant, then add the crushed garlic and the herbs. Season with salt and pepper. Mix with the cooked lentils and stir well.
In a deep bowl, add the drained and rinsed cannellini beans and roughly mash them with a fork. Add the veg and lentil mix, the finely chopped parsley, and the flaxseed binding mixture. Mix everything thoroughly.
With slightly wet hands, form a ball from the mixture, roughly the size of a big walnut. Set on an oven tray lined with baking paper and do the same with the rest of the mixture.
If you want to freeze some for easy meals through the week, lay them on a tray without touching one another, freeze, then transfer to a storage container. Defrost thoroughly before baking.
To bake, coat the balls with cooking spray and place in a preheated fan oven at 180C for 15 minutes.
Serve over pasta with marinara sauce, in a sub with pesto and rocket salad, or with mashed potato and mushroom gravy. The options are endless.
Nutritional info per serving:
| Calories | 416 |
|---|---|
| Total Fat | 26g |
| Total Carbohydrates | 27g |
| Protein | 16g |
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