Keto Turkey Meatballs

So what's a girl to do when she wants to make traditional meatballs (my family recipe can be found here), but her husband wants to eat as few carbs as possible?  Substitute ground almonds for the Italian breadcrumbs that are usually called for in the recipe.  Of course ground almonds don't have the same flavor as Italian breadcrumbs so I've upped the herbs and spices too.  These meatballs can be baked or fried, you decide.

I like to start by mixing all the extra stuff together before adding the meat.  I think the ingredients are distributed more evenly that way.  Here you see water (yes water), eggs, ground parmesan cheese, almond meal (almond flour), dried parsley, garlic powder, oregano, salt, black pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes.

Place all the ingredients listed above in a bowl and mix well.

You can combine the mixture easily by hand, but I pretty much use my stand mixer every time I have the chance.  

Now add the ground turkey and mix again.

See how evenly mixed together everything looks?

I like to use a #50 scoop to portion out my meatballs - each are a little bigger than 1 tablespoon.  That’s my favorite meatball size, but do whatever you like.  These meatballs can be baked (I'd bake this size at 400F for 10-15 minutes, or until they reach an internal temperature of 165F), but today I felt like going old school so I fried them in about 1/2-inch of olive oil.  

Turn as needed until they're cooked through and brown all over.

Once you have a mountain of meatballs, freeze for later or add them to your favorite tomato sauce (try one of my most popular recipes, San Marzano Tomato Sauce).  OR, try my favorite Busy Weeknight Marinara. Enjoy!

Items used to make this recipe:

(affiliate links)

• stand mixer https://amzn.to/3G1yFZA

• BeaterBlade attachment https://amzn.to/3FIXdoT

• #50 scoop https://amzn.to/3v4hWP6

• almond meal https://amzn.to/3V8vDqH

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Low-Carb Turkey Meatballs (Keto, Gluten-Free)

makes 60 meatballs

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 pounds ground turkey

• 2 large eggs

• 1/2 cup finely ground almond flour (or meal), sifted

• 1/2 cup ground parmesan cheese

• 1/3 cup water

• 2 tablespoon dried parsley flakes

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

• olive oil for frying

Directions

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or by hand), combine the eggs, almond meal, parmesan, water, parsley, salt, garlic powder, pepper, crushed red pepper, and oregano until well mixed; add ground turkey and mix until evenly combined.

2. Roll turkey mixture into 60 meatballs - I like to do this with a #50 portion scoop (like this one).

3. Heat about 1/2-inch of olive oil in a skillet and fry meatballs, in batches, until golden brown all over and cooked through, turning as needed.

Note

• Meatballs can also be baked in a 400F oven for 10-15 minutes or until they reach an internal temperature of 165F.

Nutritional stats for 3 meatballs 120 calories, 6g fat, 0,5g carbs, 16g protein.

Frico Eggs (Keto)

Frico (freek-o) - "what's frico" you might be asking?  Frico are thin, crispy, lacey discs of cooked cheese (in this case, parmesan).  Frico are often crumbled over a salad or served as an appetizer.  Today I'm bulking up these delicate disks by marrying them with hard-cooked eggs - the flavor marriage of the two are perfect together.  Super cool looking too, don't you think?

Start by cutting hard-cooked eggs in half lengthwise.  A thin, sharp knife works best (like this one).

Oh hey, check out my absolute favorite method for cooking eggs with shells that release perfectly every single time, even when the eggs are freshly laid.  And here's my second favorite method that works almost as well.

In a nonstick skillet over medium-low heat, place little mounds of grated or ground parmesan cheese.  Depending on the size of your eggs, use between 1 1/2 and 2 teaspoons for each egg half.  You can substitute other cheeses if you like, but you'll have to experiment to see which ones work well.  I've used pecorino romano - it works beautifully, but the flavor is stronger and the cheese is quite a bit saltier than parmesan.

Carefully center one egg half on each mound of cheese.  

Now we wait.  If any bits of cheese start jumping around in the pan, lower the heat.  You don't want to risk burning the cheese so take it slow and be patient - the whole process will only take a few minutes.

Remove from the heat when they look like this.  Allow to cool slightly before removing from the pan.  Use a very thin, flexible nylon spatula (like this one) to protect the finish of your nonstick pan.  

That's all there is to it - super easy.  Enjoy!

Items used to make this recipe:

(affiliate links)

• nonstick skillet https://amzn.to/46tR6Bt

• nylon spatula https://amzn.to/3Xqec7X

• thin, sharp knife https://amzn.to/46or5Dr

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Frico Eggs

makes 4 appetizers

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and cut in half

• 2 tablespoons ground pecorino romano or parmesan cheese

Directions

1. In a nonstick skillet over medium-low heat, divide cheese into 4 equal mounds spaced evenly apart.

2. Top each cheese mound with 1/2 hard-cooked egg, cut side down; allow cheese to slowly melt until golden brown (if the cheese starts to jump in the pan, lower the heat).

3. Remove from skillet and enjoy.