You guys, this week’s Friday Finds post has an excellent recipe and other fun links, but it’s mostly dedicated to the two kitchen gadgets that I can’t stop talking about.*
#1. SPIRALIZED VEGETABLES
The 1st gadget is the Paderno World Cuisine Tri-Blade Spiral Vegetable Slicer, which is currently $28 on Amazon.
#2. THE “SPAGHETTI” AND MEATBALL RECIPE WE’VE BEEN EATING ALL WEEK
Now that I’ve got the spiralizing technique down, we’ve been eating a lot of zucchini and summer squash “noodles” around here. And you know what’s delicious on top of a big pile of vegetable noodles? MEATBALLS! I’ve made many meatball recipes in my time. The meatball recipe below was inspired from the book The Slim Palate by Joshua Weissman. His recommendation to add minced fresh rosemary to the beef is something I had never tried. The meatballs are delicious and fragrant and a lot less work than the sweet and sour ones I recommended months ago. I made a few tweaks to keep the meatballs kosher and to make the actual cooking part a bit easier.
RECIPE FOR MY “SPAGHETTI” AND MEATBALLS
For the noodles:
- Spiralize some zucchini and some summer squash.
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Heat a little bit of extra virgin olive oil in a pan.
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Toss the noodles in the oil and add some sea salt and fresh pepper. This step only takes a few minutes, maybe a little longer if you want your noodles less “al dente.” I vote for cooking them for a shorter time than you think you need. You’ll have leftovers and once you reheat the noodles, they get even softer.
For the meatballs (Adapted from Joshua Weissman’s Sweet Rosemary Meatball recipe in The Slim Palate)
INGREDIENTS
First of all, I double every meatball recipe that I use because it’s the same amount of work for twice the meatballs. Plus, meatballs freeze well. I’ve doubled the ingredients for you already.
-2 pounds ground beef
-2 shallots, minced
-6 cloves garlic, minced
-2 large carrots, chopped at first (then I throw them in the Mini Prep.)
-4 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary
-2 eggs
-salt and pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS
- I used the Mini Prep to mince the shallots, garlic cloves, rosemary, and chopped carrots all at once. This made a fragrant, herby mush of sorts.
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In a small bowl, whisk the eggs.
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Combine the very well minced combo above with the beef in a large bowl. Then pour the whisked eggs on top. Mix it all together and form into 2-inch balls. (I use gloves for all of that. Because, gross.)
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This is where my version deviates from Weissman’s. He suggests cooking these meatballs on the stove in lard or ghee. Instead, I browned them in olive oil (for Kosher reasons) on the stove then baked them the rest of the time in the oven in a tomato sauce I love from Whole Foods. There are several sauces there with simple ingredients and less than 1g of sugar per 1/2 cup serving. (Yes, I could grab a ton of tomatoes and make my own, but it’s worth cutting corners sometimes.) The browning keeps the meatballs moist, but as I moved them around on the stove intending to cook them all the way, the shape started to get a little wonky. Everything stayed together nicely in the oven. Remember, there are no breadcrumbs or cheese in these meatballs holding things together. The eggs have a big job!
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I baked them for about 30 minutes at 350 with 3/4 of a jar of sauce tossed on top. I recommend checking them at about the 20 minute point depending on how long you browned them before. Cut into one and see where they’re at. If not cooked through, give it about 10 more minutes.
Maybe I should finally learn how to take good pictures of food? Sorry this one is so dark and grainy.
*And no, this is not a sponsored post, nor or any of my links affiliate ones (Minnesota doesn’t allow those.)
Affiliate links to Amazon or Bookshop.org could result in a small commission to me.
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38 Responses
Yum!!! The spiralizer? My kids would love this.
Amymak recently posted..Beauty Smoothie: Strawberry-Mango Lava Flow
It was worth every penny!
As you know, I love hearing about food, and I am so getting that spiralizer!
On a different note, and in a small-world sort of way, I was actually going to write you about Lee Hersch since I found her blog literally last week and saw she was in your area and taught Corepower Yoga. So strange. Another blog that focuses on food and whose bloggers are also in your area is A Pinch of Yum (pinchofyum dot com). They’re also interesting in that they have an Income section that talks about how they make money from their blog, if anyone is interested in that sort of thing.
Diann recently posted..Tips for Introverts and Their Managers
Ooooh! Can’t wait to check out that blog. And that is really so crazy that you were going to tell me about Lee. She’s great! I love her site and she was really sweet in person. I admire how much work she puts into the blog by creating so many of the recipes herself, the photography, etc. My food pictures are shameful. I don’t even want to start with working on that though . . .
I love this post. I have always wanted a mini Cuisinart (I have the large one) and now I am adding the spiralizer to my list, too. What an amazing gadget, and the pic of Rebecca using it is priceless. And the recipe looks amazing!
Julia Munroe Martin recently posted..My Writing Process: blog tour
I have the large one too, but I would never drag it out for something like one onion. This can stay on your counter all the time. And it’s fairly inexpensive. Actually, the big one only comes out for potato latkes!
The big ones are THE BEST for potato latkes!! I also use mine for pie dough (amazing Julia Child recipe). Other than that, I need the small one 🙂
Julia Munroe Martin recently posted..My Writing Process: blog tour
Nina, your great finds are really putting a damper on my camping packing/to-do list!! If that spiralizer is anything like the time/lifesaver that Bloglovin’ has already turned out to be (thank you again!), I think there are many curly veggies in my future. As always, thanks for spreading the word about the good stuff!
Kristen recently posted..Me + Her, Then + Now (A Miniseries): Movies
I saw you got the packing done! (On Instagram). So glad to help with curly vegetables, Bloglovin, and anything else!
My mom bought me a spiralizer but I have yet to use it. Glad to find some ideas here! Thanks Nina!
Sarah Rudell Beach recently posted..Mindful Parenting: Equanimity and a Screaming Child
The hardest part is done then! I find the step from “I want this” to actually buying it and opening the box is the hardest part. You already own it. So now just to open the box . . . 😉
Wowza! Set an extra plate for dinner – I’m on my way! I can’t wait to read the full report, too.
Go Jules Go recently posted..I Tried My First GU! Oh And Ran A Half Marathon.
Julie! Hi! I think of you every time I glance (okay, obsess over) my Fitbit. I’m a Fitbit convert!
Hey Nina,
The recipe sounds delish. I saw an alternate slicer type thing on an infomercial: The Veggetti.
Good to see you!
ML Swift recently posted..Cracking the WIP!
Oooh. Interesting! Yes, this is so the kind of thing you’d see on an informercial. There really is something more fun about eating “noodle-esque” zucchini than chopped or sliced zucchini.
I need those gadgets! I was bracing myself for hundreds-of-dollar prices, and I am so excited to see that they are so affordable! (Oh, and I finally subscribed to your email list- what took me so long? 😉 Excited to get the 30-day clean eating updates!)
Stephanie Sprenger recently posted..A Letter to My Dad on Father’s Day
Yes! And . . . they’re cheap in all ways as in construction. But, they do the job.
What a great way to get more veggies into the diet! And who doesn’t love meatballs? I’m still struggling with what kind of diet is going to be best for me now that I am officially pre-diabetic… (Family history, and unfortunately, a doctor’s recommendation to take a statin drug KNOWN to cause diabetes in women, which I took, WHICH raised my blood sugar levels significantly)… Anywhooo… Maybe if I just come to your house, my blood sugar will stabilize and I’ll lose weight. But wait… you live too far away! 🙂
Melissa Crytzer Fry recently posted..Four Years of Seeing: Book Giveaway
I just made the meatballs again and my kids didn’t notice the carrots. Hee-hee!
I’m so sorry to hear that news! Thank goodness you know the “pre” part, but still . . .it’s hard to know there are restrictions.
I love the idea of the spiralized ‘noodles’. And, holy cow, those meatballs sound delicious!
Mo at Mocadeaux recently posted..How My Fitbit and I Met
I made them again tonight! They are the real deal!
My sister would love the spiralizer, she’s obsessed with trying to make zucchini noodles 🙂
Alison recently posted..Through The Lens Thursday #24: Deep
They are SO easy with the spiralizer!
Okay, I was SO EXCITED because I thought you had found a miracle hair product for curls.
And now I’m starving and digging out the old-skool spiralizer I bought at a garage sale hundreds of years ago. Those meatballs sound so good, and I’m wishing I had some zucchini on hand. Totally making that for dinner one night this week.
That would be cool! Except I have straight, flat, lifeless hair unless I put it in curlers. But yes– dig out that spiralizer!
Spiral zucchini as spaghetti! That’s inspired. In the summer I find myself gravitating toward lighter fare, trying to get away from heavy, starchy foods.
Speaking of which, I love smoothies in the summer and one of the kitchen “gadgets” I’ve been loving lately is my immersion blender. It makes such quick work of smoothies right in my mug.
But that spiral slicer is pretty awesome!
Jackie Cangro recently posted..The One With the Electrodes
I am so with you on the immersion blender, which I use to make soup right in the pot. It’s so much easier than when I used to pour the contents of the pot into a regular blender.
I’m totally obsessed with spiralized vegetables, or spaghetti that isn’t really pasta noodles. Spaghetti squash and zucchini! I prefer it. Add a great sauce and some cheese and I’m sold!
Tamara recently posted..A Lovely Little Flashback Friday.
Seriously you would love this!
This is the first I’ve heard of this! Talk about instant “noodles.” Just might make veggies even more fun for the kids, too.
Nina recently posted..The Biggest Reason Parents Should Have a Life Outside of Kids
And it’s so fun for the kids to use! (With supervision, of course. Those blades are sharp!)
Interesting looking gadget! I wish there was one (other than the cheap and nasty vintage number I found) that simply grates and slices stuff without having to turn on a switch. But maybe I should move with the times. At any rate, I can see the appeal of zucchini turned spaghetti. Yum!
Alarna Rose Gray recently posted..Centre of the Universe
This was has no switch. It’s totally manual. The spiralizer, I mean. The mini prep is electric. But I don’t think it could possibly mince so small otherwise.
I’ve been dying for a spiralizer for a while now. I should probably just jump in and get one. Your “spaghetti” and meatballs might be dark, but it looks tempting and delicious!
Miriam @ OvertimeCook recently posted..Creamy Avocado Salad Dressing
I think I need you to come give me a photography class! Your photos are great!
Spiralized veggies=genius! I need one of those babies!
Hallie Sawyer (@Hallie_Sawyer) recently posted..The Summer Balancing Act
You would love it!
Thanks Nina for this great post. I also got a spiralizer a few weeks ago and I can’t stop loving it since then. It convinced my children into eating vegetables that they disliked before. It is really a great kitchen gadget that I would recommend to everyone out there.