Italian Mushrooms Meatballs

Italian Mushroom Meatballs

(James Rohrbacher)

Ingredients:

  • 1 ½ cups old fashioned rolled oats
  • 1 cup walnuts
  • 1 cup no-salt-added or low sodium vegetable broth or water
  • ¼ cup tomato paste
  • ¼ cup Dr. Fuhrman’s MatoZest or other no-salt seasoning blend, adjusted to taste
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 6 cups mushrooms, pulsed in food processor
  • 1 tablespoon dried basil
  • 1 tablespoon dries oregano
  • 2 tablespoons ground fennel seed, or to taste
  • 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes or cayenne to taste
  • Freshly ground pepper to taste
  • 3 cups fresh or frozen greens (kale, collards, mustards or spinach), finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons parsley, minced
  • 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast (more to taste if desired0
  • No-salt-added pasta sauce (for serving)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

Pulse the oats and walnuts in a food processor or until coarsely ground and then place in a mixing bowl.

Set aside.

In a small saucepan, whisk together vegetable broth (or water), tomato paste and MatoZest. Heat over medium high heat until boiling. Pour over the ground oats and walnuts. Stir well and set aside.

Dry sauté the onions, garlic and mushrooms, covered, until onion is translucent. Add the basil, oregano, fennel, red pepper flakes, black pepper and greens and continue cooking uncovered until there is no liquid in the pan.

Combine the sautéed onions and mushrooms with the rolled oat/walnut mixture and add the parsley and nutritional yeast. Stir well to combine. Using a small ice cream scoop and your hands, shape into small balls about 1 inch in diameter and place on a parchment paper line baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, then turn the balls over and bake another 5 minutes or until lightly browned.

Serve with warmed, no-salt-added pasta sauce.

Serves 8