Looking to spice up your dinner routine? These Moroccan Turkey Zucchini Meatballs are full of flavor, yet packed with health benefits. The grated zucchini adds fiber, vitamin C, vitamin B6, potassium, and magnesium, without overpowering the turkey. And the blend of Moroccan spices of turmeric, cumin, paprika, and cayenne pepper lends a wonderful depth to meatballs without added calories.
The key to a crispy, brown outside and well-formed meatball is properly prepared zucchini. Squeeze as much of the liquid out of the grated zucchini before adding to the other ingredients!
I like to serve mine with greek yogurt mixed with lemon and garlic, hummus, or baba ganoush.
Moroccan Turkey Zucchini Meatballs
Course: DinnerCuisine: MediterraneanDifficulty: Easy2
servings10
minutes20
minutesFlavorful turkey meatballs lightened-up with grated zucchini
Ingredients
1/2 cup zucchini, about 1 small zucchini
1/4 cup red onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, mined
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon cayenne paprika
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoon cilantro, finely chopped
1/2 pound lean ground turkey
1-2 tablespoon olive oil
Directions
- Heat the oven to 425 degrees.
- Grate the zucchini using a microplane grater and squeeze as much of the liquid out as you can using a clean towel or paper towels. Place in a bowl.
- Add the red onion, garlic, egg, dry spices, salt, pepper, and cilantro to the bowl and mix well before adding the turkey. This will ensure that the meat is not over mixed and becomes tough. Form into about 1.5 inch balls.
- Heat the oil in a skillet on medium high heat. Once the olive oil is hot enough for the meat to sizzle in the oil, add half the meatballs. Working in batches ensure that the pan stay hot enough to brown the meatballs. Brown for 3 minutes on each side and repeat for the remaining meatballs.
- Place the meatballs on a baking sheet lined with foil. Bake for about 6-8 minutes until cooked through. Enjoy!