ZUCCHINI MEATBALLS IN TOMATO-BASIL SAUCE
DISCLAIMER: I received this product, courtesy of CLASSICO & Influenster,
for review & use with this blog post. All opinions are my own.
As of late, The Mr. & I have been trying to eat healthier, which means no pasta for us :( However, when I was reached to try out the new CLASSICO Organic Tomato & Basil Pasta Sauce and they even provided easy recipes, I was all in!
We went for this recipe in particular because we already had most of the ingredients on hand and it was super easy to make. The only thing we didn't have was Parmesan cheese, so I substituted for a soft shredded cheese and it was still super delicious. The best part is you can choose to add pasta or not! In our case, we opted for a simple green salad with Balsamic Vinegar on the side and also added a dollop of sour cream to break the tomato sauce bite a little bit. It was heaven. The CLASSICO Organic Tomato & Basil Pasta Sauce tastes homemade - no joke. It's like nonna was in the kitchen making sure this was made to perfection. Next time you go to your local grocery store, I suggest you pick one of these jars up. It's so good, you'll thank me later ;) Now that we have tried this recipe, I am tempted to tweak these meatballs a bit with some ground turkey or even add some jalapeño or crushed red pepper flakes to the mixture for some more dimension. No matter how you make it or what you add to it, the CLASSICO Organic Tomato & Basil Pasta Sauce is absolutely delicious and we totally recommend it! ♥
INGREDIENTS
• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1 cup shredded zucchini (about 1 entire zucchini)
• ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/3 cup seasoned dry bread crumbs
• 1 ½ tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 jar (24 oz.) CLASSICO Organic Tomato & Basil Pasta Sauce
PREPARATION
HEAT oven to 400ºF
MIX all ingredients except pasta sauce just until blended
SHAPE into 18 (1-inch) meatballs. Place on parchment-covered rimmed baking sheet
BAKE 15 to 20 min. or until meatballs are done (165ºF)
SPOON meatballs into large saucepan
ADD pasta sauce
STIR gently until meatballs are evenly coated with pasta sauce
Bring to BOIL, stirring frequently
SIMMER on medium-low heat 10 min, stirring occasionally
ENJOY! ☺