Description
These Baked Chicken Pesto Meatballs are a healthy and flavorful dish combining lean ground chicken with fresh grated zucchini and carrot, enriched with basil pesto and parmesan cheese. They bake quickly to golden perfection and make a perfect main course or appetizer, served as is or with pasta and sauce.
Ingredients
Scale
Meatball Mixture
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 1 cup grated zucchini
- 1 medium carrot, grated
- 1/4 cup basil pesto
- 1 large egg
- 1/3 cup breadcrumbs
- 2 Tbsp grated parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Prepare the veggies. Grate the zucchini and carrots using a box grater. Gently pat the zucchini dry with a paper towel to soak up some of the liquid.
- Mix together the ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, combine ground chicken, egg, grated carrots and zucchini, basil pesto, breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes. Mix the meatball ingredients together using a spatula or your hands until all combined.
- Make the meatballs. Using a small to medium cookie scoop (about 1.2 tablespoons), form 2-inch sized balls (golf ball size) from the meatball mixture. Place them on a prepared baking sheet lined with parchment paper or sprayed with non-stick spray in a single layer. You should get about 22 meatballs.
- Bake. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the meatballs for 14 minutes, until the tops are golden brown and cooked through. Check that the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F using a meat thermometer.
- Serve. Serve the pesto meatballs immediately as is, or toss them with leftover pesto or a simple tomato sauce and serve with pasta noodles.
Notes
- Ensure to pat dry the grated zucchini to remove excess moisture, which helps the meatballs hold together better.
- You can substitute gluten-free breadcrumbs to make the recipe gluten free if desired.
- Use fresh basil pesto for the best flavor or store-bought pesto as a convenient alternative.
- Adjust red pepper flakes to your preferred spice level or omit for a milder taste.
- Leftover meatballs can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 1 month.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 220 kcal
- Sugar: 2 g
- Sodium: 450 mg
- Fat: 10 g
- Saturated Fat: 3 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 12 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 22 g
- Cholesterol: 75 mg
