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Serves
20 golf size meatballs
Author Notes
This vegetarian meatball recipe goes well with anything that you can pair meatballs with – tomato sauce, pesto or even on its own as finger food. The eggplant in the recipe acts as a binder replacing eggs in the traditional meatball recipe, and also gives a meaty flavor. This is a light and healthy recipe while the warm spices like cinnamon and cumin make the dish taste like a real hearty meatball dish.
I really hope you try out this recipe! Buon appetito! —Medha | Farm on Plate
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Ingredients
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2 cups
cooked french lentils (1 cup dry lentils = 2 to 2-1/2 cups cooked)
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4
medium eggplants (or 1 cup of cooked eggplant)
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2
garlic cloves
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1/2 cup
walnuts crushed
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1/2 cup
grated parmesan cheese / cottage cheese / paneer
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1/2 cup
fresh oregano leaves
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1 teaspoon
cinnamon powder
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1 teaspoon
ground black pepper
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1 teaspoon
cumin powder
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1 teaspoon
chilli flakes
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1 tablespoon
sea salt
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1/2 cup
bread crumbs
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3 tablespoons
olive oil
Directions
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Chop the eggplants in small pieces.
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Put a large pan on high heat, pour in 3 tbsp olive oil. Add eggplant pieces and season with sea salt and pepper.
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Cook for 5 - 8 minutes. Feel free to add a little more oil to the pan if pan is getting too dry. Cook until eggplants are golden on all sides. Let it cool down.
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In a food processor, pulverize the cooked lentils, eggplant mixture, garlic cloves, crushed walnuts, cheese, fresh oregano leaves, breadcrumbs, cinnamon powder, black pepper, cumin powder and salt.
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Roll the mixture in round balls between your palms. The balls should not fall apart. If the mixture is too sticky , you can add some more breadcrumbs. Put them in the fridge for 20 minutes.
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Preheat the oven to 350 °F.
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Line meatballs on a baking sheet with parchment paper and back for 15 -20 minutes until golden brown. Alternatively you can also cook these meatballs in pan with a little olive oil until golden brown.
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These delicious meatballs can be eaten by themselves or pair with green pesto or tomato sauce.
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