These ground turkey meatballs are super juicy and make the absolute perfect appetizer for your Thanksgiving dinner. The cranberry sauce is tangy, sweet, and compliments these meatballs to perfection! Heck, even throw these meatballs on the dinner table and serve them as a side dish!
¼cupfresh squeezed orange juicejuice squeezed out from half and orange
zestfrom1 small orange
Instructions
For the meatballs:Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a baking pan with cooking spray and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl add ground turkey, egg, panko breadcrumbs, garlic, parmesan cheese, onion powder, oregano, sage, ground black pepper, and salt. Mix well to combine.
Form balls with hands and place each meatball on the prepared baking pan. Bake for 30 minutes.
For the sauce:Meanwhile, in a saucepan large enough to fit the meatballs, add the cranberry sauce, pure maple syrup, applesauce, orange juice, and zest. Cook over medium-low heat. Stir to combine and cook until everything is blended together.
Once the meatballs are done cooking, add them to the sauce and stir to completely coat the meatballs. Serve immediately or transfer to a crockpot and serve as an appetizer.
Sprinkle fresh parsley on top before serving as a garnish! The parsley makes your dish look very pretty and appetizing :)
Notes
How can the kids help?Have your children help add in all the ingredients. If your child is old enough, you can teach them how to roll the meat mixture into meatballs using 2 hands. To help your meatballs not dry out don't overmix your meat. Mix it just enough so the ingredients are evenly distributed throughout. Try spraying the tops of them before popping them in the oven. This also helps to crisp the outsides.When storing your meatballs, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Or freeze them for up to 3 months.