Baked Meatballs and Zucchini “Spaghetti” {GAPS Legal}

Ingredients

Meatballs

• 1 lb grass-fed ground beef
• 1 lb natural ground pork *No additives
• 1 pastured egg
• 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1 1/2 tsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (leave out for kids)
• 1/2 cup almond flour

Zucchini “Spaghetti”

• 2 small (or 1 large) zucchini per person 

Homemade Marinara- easy version (If you like to make your own)

• Crushed tomatoes ( I prefer the brands sold in jars)
• 1/2 onion (finely chopped)
• 3-4 garlic cloves (crushed or finely chopped)
• 1-2 Tbsp coconut oil
• 4 leaves fresh basil or 1 Tbsp of dried basil
• 1 Tbsp of any or each of the following herbs: marjoram, sage, thyme, oregano  (optional)
• Sea salt to taste

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F.  Grease the bottom of a 9×13 Pyrex dish with a little coconut oil.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the beef, pork, cheese, egg, parsley, basil, garlic powder, salt, red pepper flakes, and almond flour. Using your hands, mix all ingredients until well incorporated. With your hands, shape/roll a small handful of the mixture to a small to medium size meatball. *I don’t weigh each meatball, I just use about a small handful for each meatball. Place in the Pyrex dish so they line up in rows. *You can make smaller meatballs if you are making them to add to a soup dish instead. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes until golden and cooked through. 

While the meatballs are cooking, make the marinara sauce. *You can cheat here and use pre-made marinara, but I prefer to make my own with crushed tomatoes. *If you use pre-made marinara, check the ingredients to make sure sugar or any other not-so-welcome ingredient are hiding in there. In a large sauce pot, heat coconut oil. Add chopped onions, garlic and herbs. With medium heat, cook these until onions are translucent and garlic is soft and slightly golden. Add crushed tomatoes and sea salt to taste. Let simmer until meatballs are done. 

While meatballs are baking and sauce is simmering, you will prepare the zucchini “spaghetti”. With a good peeler, mandoline or food processor, you want to julienne the zucchini (cut in long thin strips). The idea is to get long skinny strings of zucchini, like spaghetti. * I use a Swissmar julienne peeler and just peel the zucchini with the skin in. *If you don’t have the tools to julienne these, you can just peel them in thin, flat strips. Once they are cut, you want to blanch or drop them in boiling water for 2-5 minutes. *Don’t overcook or they will get soggy. Empty into a strainer to drain the water. You can actually eat them raw as well depending on how you like them. 

When meatballs are done, serve a bed of zucchini strips with a few meatballs covered in marinara and enjoy!!

This recipe makes great meatball leftovers!