Hidden Veggie Meatballs

kid and adult approved!

Happy Thursday, meal preppers! I am hearing y’all loud and clear- we are way overwhelmed with this busy season. I know meal prep may feel like the last thing you have time for, but trust me, it’s going to save you so much stress throughout the week.

And this meal prep is such a good one because it is totally kid approved. My kids LOVE these meatballs. And I love making them because they are veggie and protein packed. The veggies keep the meatballs moist and delicious.

In this meal prep, I serve them with some easy roasted potatoes and carrots, but they are totally versatile. My kids (and I) love having them with spaghetti!

So do yourself a favor and take less than an hour to do the meal prep for this week. Your future self will be seriously so glad you did.

For my paid subscribers- the meal plan for this week is easy delicious meals for you- think crockpot, sheet pan meals, alllll the quick and easy goods.

MEAL PLAN AT A GLANCE

Meal Plan- Here’s an idea of how to build out a week of meals. You can swap things out, move things around- tailor it to your liking!

The full meal plan and grocery list are in a beautifully organized PDF at the bottom of this newsletter!

Not into these meals or the recipe for this week? You can always check out the archive of all previous recipes and meal plans here!

Get this prep done in less than an hour! Scroll to the bottom for the PDF of the meal plan, recipes, and grocery list.

THE RECIPE

Hidden Veggie Meatballs

Macros per serving:

424cal / 18g fat / 31g carbs/ 5g fiber / 35g protein (I used 1.25 lb ground beef 93% lean, 1.25 lb potatoes)

Servings: 4 servings

Time: 40 mins

Tools:

• Cutting board

• Knife

• Large bowl

• 2 baking sheets

• Aluminum foil

Ingredients:

• 1-1.5 lb potatoes (red, yellow, or gold would be best!)

• 1 lb large carrots

• 1.5 tbsp oil

• 1 tbsp lemon juice

• 3 garlic cloves, minced

• 1.5 tsp salt

• ½ tsp oregano

• 1 zucchini

• 2 large carrots

• 1-1.5 lb ground beef

• 1 egg

• 1 tbsp almond flour

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• 1 tsp salt

• Dipping sauce of choice (BBQ sauce, ketchup, marinara, tzatziki, sweet chili sauce, etc)

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400. Line two baking sheets with foil.

2. Chop the potatoes and all but 2 of the carrots. Add to one of the baking sheets.

3. Mix together the oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and oregano. Pour over the potatoes and carrots and mix until evenly coated. Bake for about 35 minutes.

4. While it bakes, pulse the zucchini and carrots in a food processor until finely grated. Mix all ingredients for the meatballs together (zucchini, carrots, beef, egg, almond flour, garlic powder, salt).

5. Form into balls and place on the second baking sheet. Bake for about 20 minutes, until the meatballs are firm and browned on top.

6. Serve the meatballs, potatoes and carrots with dipping sauce of choice.

SUBSTITUTIONS

• Sub for ground beef: ground turkey or ground pork, just don’t go leaner than 93% lean

• Sub for almond flour: coconut flour, gluten free flour, all purpose flour

STORAGE

• Allow the everything to come to room temp and then store in airtight containers in the fridge. I like using these containers.

• This meal prep is freezer friendly! You can just freeze it in the meal prep container, but I prefer to freeze the meatballs separately from the potatoes and carrots in Ziplock bags to reduce freezer burn.

REHEATING

• Reheat for 1-2 minutes, stirring halfway through.

REDUCE FOOD WASTE

• Leftover carrots? Save for snacks! Dip them in hummus or ranch.

GROCERY LIST

PRODUCE

• 1-1.5 lb potatoes (red, yellow, or gold would be best!)

• 1 lb large carrots

• 3 garlic cloves

• 1 zucchini

MEAT/DAIRY

• 1-1.5 lb ground beef

• 1 egg

PANTRY

• 1 tbsp lemon juice

• 1 tbsp almond flour

• Dipping sauce of choice (BBQ sauce, ketchup, marinara, tzatziki, sweet chili sauce, etc)

SPICES/STAPLES

• 1.5 tbsp oil

• 1.5 tsp salt

• ½ tsp oregano

• 1 tsp garlic powder

MACROS

Per serving, 4 servings total.

424cal / 18g fat / 31g carbs/ 5g fiber / 35g protein (I used 1.25 lb ground beef 93% lean, 1.25 lb potatoes)

If you want the PDF of the meal plan, all the recipes for the week and a complete grocery list, sign up as a paid subscriber!