It was my first time making a full Thanksgiving dinner, and I think it went well! I did however forget to keep taking photos and took lots of blurry ones as I juggled 9 different vegan and mostly gluten free dishes: these appetizer beyond meatballs, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, mushroom gravy, butternut mac n' cheez, Brussels sprouts, corn, peas, and mushroom stuffing. So, as always, the uglier the photo, the more delicious the dish.
These Beyond meatballs are SUPER easy to prep and make and kept guests happy while dinner preparation was underway.
Sources: My Darling Vegan | Not Not Nutritious
Makes: 12 meatballs | Time: 20 min
Changes: used Beyond Meat; used onion powder; replaced brown sugar with coconut sugar
Ingredients
2 tsp olive oil (or other cooking oil)
2 cloves garlic
1 lb of Beyond Meat brats, broken down to resemble ground meat
1 tsp onion powder
1/4 cup gluten free panko breadcrumbs
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp salt
additional olive oil (if pan-frying)
Sauce
8 oz jellied cranberry sauce
½ cup ketchup
1 ½ tbsp coconut sugar
1 tbsp hot sauce
2 tsp lemon juice
Instructions
In a small frying pan, heat the oil over medium heat and then add the garlic. Simmer for 2 minutes.
In a large mixing bowl, add the beyond meat, spices, breadcrumbs and garlic. Use a spatula or fork to break up the meat and then mix everything together until the ingredients are evenly distributed.
Divide the mixture into 12 portions. Use your hands to roll the portions in balls.
Brush a thin layer of olive oil in a heavy pan, such as a cast iron pan. Heat the pan until hot. Drop in the meatballs and let them fry for a minute or two, without moving them.
Gently roll them over in the pan and let fry for a few more minutes, before rolling a third time. Fry them for about 10 minutes, until a light char appears.
While the meatballs cook, prepare the sauce. Stir together the sauce ingredients in a medium saucepan placed over medium heat. Cook for 5 minutes until the sauce is smooth and heated all the way through. Remove from heat. Once the meatballs are done, gently toss them with the sauce. Serve immediately.