I’ve been super into meatballs lately. Now that’s a something I never thought I’d type. But it’s true. Meatballs are easy, flavorful, filling, and you can serve them in more ways than just with pasta and red sauce. These Spinach and Feta Turkey Meatballs boast sautéed spinach to help you pack in more greens and bits of crumbled feta for extra richness and a little salty kick.
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The recipe below is just for the meatballs themselves, since there are several different ways you can serve them. They are pictured above with the classic pasta and red sauce, plus some zucchini that I quickly sautéed in the same skillet after the meatballs were finished cooking.
Other Ways to Serve Your Spinach and Feta Turkey Meatballs
You can add them to salads, serve them over a bed of rice with roasted vegetables (like I did with my Beef Kofta Meatballs), make a meatballs sub (with red sauce and mozzarella on a roll), or just change up the sauce to pesto or an alfredo sauce.
Since there are so many ways to serve these Spinach and Feta Turkey Meatballs, they are perfect for meal prepping. They hold up excellently in the refrigerator, and will also easily withstand freezing and thawing.
Can I Make These Meatballs Without Breadcrumbs?
The short answer is yes, but they will not be the same texture. The breadcrumbs and eggs keep the meatballs soft and moist, as well as acting like a glue to hold the meatballs together. If you leave out the breadcrumbs, you’ll also need to leave out the egg, or else the mixture will be too wet to shape. Because the meatballs will be more delicate, they may not hold up to cooking in a skillet, so I suggest baking them on a cookie sheet in a 375ºF oven for about 20 minutes. The resulting meatballs will be more like the texture of a hamburger, and will not have a nice browned exterior, but are still quite tasty. Also keep in mind that because you are using fewer ingredients, you may not get as many meatballs.
Can I Bake the Meatballs?
Yes, you can bake the meatballs on a parchment lined baking sheet in a 400ºF oven for about 20 minutes. Baking time can vary depending on the size of your meatballs, so make sure to break one of your larger meatballs open to make sure they have baked through. Another thing to note is that when meatballs are baked instead of cooked in a skillet they will not get the same type of browning action on the surface.
Can I Use Frozen Spinach in my Turkey Meatballs?
Yes. If using frozen spinach, make sure to get frozen “chopped” spinach so that you don’t have any large or long stringy pieces of spinach. Let the spinach fully thaw, then squeeze out as much excess moisture as possible before adding it to the meatball mixture.
The zucchini shown on the plate in these photos was just quickly sautéed in the skillet after cooking the meatballs, so it picked up some of the brown bits from the meatballs.
Spinach and Feta Turkey Meatballs
Servings 4 5-6 meatballs eachIngredients
- 4 oz. fresh spinach ($1.67)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil, divided ($0.32)
- 1 lb. lean ground turkey (93% lean) ($4.49)
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs ($0.24)
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder ($0.02)
- Freshly cracked pepper ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1 large egg ($0.22)
- 2 oz. feta, crumbled ($0.83)
Instructions
- Roughly Chop the spinach. Heat a large skillet over medium, then add 1 Tbsp olive oil. Add the chopped spinach and a pinch of salt. Sauté the spinach until it has fully wilted, then remove it from the heat.
- While the spinach is sautéing, stir together the breadcrumbs, garlic powder, freshly cracked pepper (5 or 6 cranks of a pepper mill), and salt in a large bowl. Lightly whisk the egg, then add the egg, ground turkey, sautéed spinach, and crumbled feta to the bowl with the breadcrumbs. Use your hands to combine these ingredients until evenly mixed.
- Shape the meat mixture into balls, about one heaping tablespoon each. You should get approximately 24 meatballs.
- Wipe out the skillet used for the spinach, add another tablespoon of oil, and heat the skillet once again over medium. Once hot, swirl the oil in the skillet to make sure the surface is coated, then add half of the meatballs. Cook the meatballs for about a minute to a minute and a half on each side, or until the meatballs are well browned and cooked through (about 6-8 minutes total). Remove the cooked meatballs to a clean bowl and repeat with the second batch.
- Serve your cooked meatballs with your favorite sauce, over pasta, rice, or roasted vegetables.
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Notes
Nutrition
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How to Make Turkey Meatballs – Step by Step Photos
Chop about 4 oz. (1/4 lb.) fresh spinach into smaller pieces. Small pieces will help it incorporate into the ground meat easier. If you want to use frozen spinach, make sure you get chopped frozen spinach, thaw it completely, then squeeze out as much moisture as possible before adding it to the meat mixture.
Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped spinach and a pinch of salt. Sauté the spinach until it has fully wilted (3-5 minutes). Remove the spinach from the heat.
While the spinach is sautéing, combine 1/2 cup breadcrumbs, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp salt, and some freshly cracked pepper in a large bowl. Mixing these together first helps them incorporate a little more evenly into the meat.
Briefly whisk an egg, then add it to the bowl with the breadcrumbs, along with 1 lb. lean ground turkey, the sautéed spinach, and 2 oz. crumbled feta. Mix these ingredients together with your hands until they are evenly incorporated.
Shape the meat mixture into meatballs, about one heaping tablespoon each. You should get somewhere in the neighborhood of 24 meatballs.
Give the skillet a quick wipe, then add another tablespoon of olive oil, and heat it once again over medium. Make sure to wait for the skillet to get hot, then add half the meatballs (this is to avoid over crowding, which can prevent browning). Cook the meatballs on each side until they are well browned and cooked through, about 1-1.5 minutes on each side, or about 6-8 minutes total.
Remove the cooked meatballs to a clean plate or bowl, and repeat with the second half of the meatballs. Now they’re ready to eat!
And like I mentioned before, these meatballs are perfect for meal prep! I basically packed this exact plate into my meal prep boxes and have been eating them for lunch all week. :)
These meatballs were so moist and delicious! ! I was concerned that my husband wouldn’t like them but he said he preferred them to ground beef meatballs. Another winner from Budget Bytes!
I’ve made them once before and they were really really good, except that I felt the turkey gave them a bit of a strange aftertaste. Maybe it’s because ground turkey or chicken is really uncommon in my country and I’m not used to it. Could I make them with pork or beef as an alternative? I’m worried the flavor of the spinach and feta will get lost in that.
You can! I would either do all ground beef or a 50/50 mix of pork and beef.
These exceed a 5 star rating, they just cannot be rated high enough. This is the first review I’ve left. I have been making these for YEARS; these are my “you had a baby/moved/surgery” meal I make for others, and often for my family. Every single person over many years who tried them has asked for the recipe. Every single one! That says something. I have made them stovetop, oven and crockpot method- stovetop is best, oven okay but soft, crockpot falls apart but still delicious. Make the recipe as is, don’t fiddle. Make twice as much as you planned and it still won’t be enough. Freezes awesome, flavor grows while frozen in some magical way. Use a cheese marinara sauce if you can find it. Serve with side of parsley butter noodles and roasted green beans- inexpensive but feels fancy. It will be outstanding, and somehow better the next day. A friend said she was going to have another hip replacement just to be delivered these meatballs- how is that for a review? Thank you Beth for this awesome recipe.
SO good!! I added more chopped spinach and used panko bread crumbs. I started pan frying them and got a little frustrated that they were sticking and hard to cook all sides. Then, my husband suggested finishing them in the air fryer! Yes, please! I air fried them for 5 minutes on 400, and they turned out beautifully.
These were a hit!! I’ll definitely try baking them next time, because pan frying them was sort of a pain the neck (though I do use stainless pans, so that was part of it). I made these with cheese tortellini and pasta sauce. Wonderful!
These meatballs would be good with some oregano and sun-dried tomatoes mixed in and served in a pita with cucumbers, tomatoes, and tazeki sauce. Yummo!
Tasty, super quick! Had all the ingredients except for the spinach and only found ground chicken. Doubled the recipe to freeze a bunch raw. Tonight we paired the meatballs with the Lemon Parsley pasta recipe from Beth. Versatile flavours so we are planning on pairing the next meal with tzatziki and lemon potatoes 😊
Forgot to say the one batch that we used the oven method for the one half of the batch we did not freeze. Oven at 350° for 20 minutes and they were done at the right temp
I liked these meat balls more than I expected! I’m going to try the oven method next time just to speed up cook time.
Great tasting and easy to make. Not sure whether to make it into a spaghetti sauce. Also, I’d like to just make the turkey balls into an appetizer.
I made this for dinner tonight. It was delicious! I served them with tomato sauce on top of spaghetti. I will be making this again.
Just great. Nice, flavorful protein option. I made mine into 4 patties and used sauteed chard and kale in place of the spinach. Will definitely make again! Might even add a bit of crushed red pepper next time to give it a little kick.
I just made these. SOOO DELICIOUS AND EASY!!! just followed it as is.
Oh my word are these good!! I’m not a fan of ground turkey so I used ground chicken and fresh garlic. After rolling into balls, popped them in refrig for about an hour. They stayed together really well while cooking. Made chicken gravy and served over rice. I could have eaten all of them. Delish!!
It’s delicious! Unfortunately mine fell apart all of them. I’m not sure what I did wrong.
It’s hard to say…next time, I would suggest letting the mixture sit for a few extra minutes so the breadcrumbs have a chance to fully hydrate and help bind everything together. Freezing/refrigerating the meatballs before searing can also help them stay together (but may require additional cooking time). Also, as Beth recommends in two sections above the blog post (CAN I MAKE THESE MEATBALLS WITHOUT BREADCRUMBS?/CAN I BAKE IN THE OVEN?), these meatballs are pretty delicate since ground turkey is such a lean protein, and baking them in the oven can really help! ~ Marion :)
One of my favorites! I can eat them by themselves. My husband likes them with spaghetti sauce.
I double the recipe so we have leftovers.
I baked for 24 min on 400 degrees – turning
Also use frozen spinach (a 10 ounce package drained very well).
Have made these several times and they are always a favorite! I was wondering if I could prep them up until the point of cooking then refrigerate until I’m ready to cook them? For example, if I can prep them in the morning then refrigerate until cooking them (either in a pan or oven) that evening.
Hi, Emily! As Beth mentions in the blog post (just below the video), “They hold up excellently in the refrigerator, and will also easily withstand freezing and thawing.” You can pre-cook the meatballs and then refrigerate them. Or, you can prepare the meatballs ahead and store them in the refrigerator or freezer until you are ready to cook them. If storing them uncooked in the fridge, the meatballs (or any sort of raw poultry product) should be kept in an air-tight container and cooked (or frozen) within 1-2 days. ~Marion :)
This is one of our family’s favorites. I bake the meatballs on a wire rack for ~20 min at 350 until internal temp hits 170. They aren’t as crispy on the outside but takes less attention and I can double or triple the recipe. Love them.
Omitted the breadcrumbs and these still came out great!
These were awesome – easy and flavorful! Great way to add green leafy veggies into dinner in a super easy way. I would recommend flattening out the meatballs a little with the back of a spatula so that the middle cooks within the 6-8 minutes on the stovetop.
Anything to beware of when using frozen spinach? Looking forward to making (and eating!) these.
Yes, make sure to get chopped frozen spinach because otherwise you might get really long stringy pieces, and make sure to squeeze out most of the water after thawing. :)
I have never made anything so delicious with so little ingredients! The meatballs were delicious!! I’m going to make them into burgers the next time they were so flavourful!! Thank you for the recipe!!
I really want this recipe of the spinach meatball dish omg it looks amazing so I signed up hopefully I can see the pics and the recipes better with email I can’t wait too try it. I love to cook
Can these be frozen before cooked or should one cook them first, then freeze them?
You could freeze them either way. :) If you freeze them already cooked just keep in mind that you may want to reheat them by simmering in a sauce or another “wet” method so the outside doesn’t brown further.
Another fabulous Budget Bytes recipe! I ended up baking these (400 degrees/ 15 minutes) but otherwise followed the recipe–super tasty!
What type of sauce did you serve yours with? Was it a store bought jar of sauce or homemade? Suggestions? Thanks!
It was just a store-bought sauce. Trying to keep it easy. :)
I cannot wait to try it. I absolutely love your format: print and photo. It takes away any guesswork. Thank you!
PS. Do you also do vegan recipes?
Yep! Here is the link to our vegan category. :)
I love this recipe! So easy, healthy and delicious! I bake them on a metal baking sheet with a little olive oil spray and they get nice and crispy! I flip them halfway through. Just like fried! Had with a side of orzo and sautéed zucchini and Tzaziki sauce for dipping!
Love these, I make them all the time. Curious – can I make them in the air fryer?
Unfortunately, I don’t have any experience with air fryers, so I’m not sure. :)
I’m not sure if you figured this out, but I found 400 degrees in the air fryer for 12 minutes (flipping half way through) did the trick!
Thought about baking the meatballs but decided to try the pan method per the recipe. Despite a user error (didn’t use a non-stick pan) I was able to finish the meatballs in the AF. They were AMAZING!! My husband had seconds… always a good sign… and said several times how delicious this meal was. Five gold stars for this recipe!
Made these for meal prep for the week with some ground antelope we had in the freezer! Subbed almond flour crackers crumbled for the bread crumbs because that’s what we had. They are so yummy! Thanks so much for the great and easy recipe!
Can almond flour be subbed for the breadcrumbs?
I don’t think almond flour absorbs moisture in the same way as regular breadcrumbs, so they probably wouldn’t work as well.
Could these be baked instead of cooked on the stovetop?
Yes, you can bake at 400ºF for about 20 minutes. Baking time will vary depending on the size of your meatballs, so make sure to break a larger one open to make sure it has cooked through.
I used a 10 oz bag of frozen spinach, once you squeeze out all the water it’s not that much. I tried frying these in a cast iron but they were taking FOREVER (I was checking with a meat thermometer). For the second batch I just baked them for 20 min at 400 like other commenters suggested, then crisped them up after in the cast iron. You could also fry a bit before and then bake.
These were delicious! I am on keto so I subbed the bread crumbs for crushed up pork rinds and they came out phenomenal! Will definitely be making again. My only question is whether the uncooked meat balls can be frozen to use later? I’d like to make a big batch and freeze them to use for small meals later.
Yep, you can definitely freeze the cooked or uncooked meatballs for later. :)
Loved making this recipe as I was able to easily substitute some ingredients with what I had. I left out the garlic powder and breadcrumbs as I paired the meatballs with a spinach, pistachio pesto that was zesty and garlicky.
Yum! I served these with sauteed zucchini over Bon Apetit’s pasta al limone (minus the parmesan cheese since the feta brings plenty of flavor).
I baked these in the oven for 20 minutes at 400 degrees and swapped the breadcrumbs for parmesan cheese to make this recipe even better. Such delicious cheesy goodness in every bite!
Has anyone made these in an air-fryer yet? I plan on making these for dinner later on, and was just wondering whether to use the air-fryer instead perhaps, just because I don’t like cleaning the fine grease film that sits all over the kitchen after frying foods. (Don’t have an exhaust hood unfortunately)
just made these using Mediterranean crumbled feta from Trader Joe’s along with frozen spinach from TJs (didn’t cook it beforehand). Added extra oregano and got 23 meatballs that I’m cooking in a mini-muffin tin at 375F for 20 minutes.
These were super delicious! I’d like to make them again, but I wanted to ask if there is a different, less expensive type of cheese I could use? Feta is really expensive here (I’m in Canada).
These are the best! I replace the feta with a plain creamy goat cheese and make mini patties to make the cooking time faster and they are fantastic!
This is about the 4th time I’ve made this and it comes out great every time. I am glad I read some of the reviews though, because it helped a lot! Like making sure your hands are wet to form the meatballs, baking them at 400 for about 20 minutes ( way easier), adding a little cumin and coriander to the spices, I even crushed up some garlic flavored Triscuits this last time. Turned out great along with roasted carrots, cauliflower, and broccoli. Definitely a keeper recipe! Thank you
One of my favorite recipes! L O V E D IT!!
I love it.
I tried these and they were amazing! Super juicy and tasty. For a bit more flavour, I added half of a minced onion and sautéed it with the spinach in the beginning. I’m thinking of adding cumin this time around!
Yes that’s a great addition! I’ve added mediterranean oregano to the meatball mixture a few times and it’s great.
These were good. I made a garlic aioli to dip them in and will pair the leftovers with garlic couscous.
YUMMY!! Thanks Chantal!
I made these meatballs once again an they are just great. Instead of tomato sauce I combined equal parts bbq sauce with cranberry sauce to put on top of the meatballs it really was a nice touch. If cranberry sauce is not available I use seedless raspberry jam.
Oh that sounds delicious Julie!
I love Budget Bytes but I think Julie’s post may have been trolling you guys. BBQ sauce and cranberry sauce/sub raspberry jam???
Thanks for looking out for us. I think she was just using what she had on hand and in a pinch, BBQ sauce and cranberry could add a tangy sweetness. :)
Thanks for a great recipe – really delicious! I found it less messy to bake them at 375 for about 20 minutes. You can make rolling them easier by dipping your hands in water.
Thanks for the tip Lisa!
These meatballs were fantastic. The only challenging part was rolling them into meatballs as they got sticky. But, the whole family loved them.
Yes that can be tricky! I use a smaller ice cream scoop when making mine sometimes to help at least start it in a sphere.
I am on a diet and these meatballs are just perfect for clean eating!!! I just love them.
They are my weekly go to! They really are just perfect for meal prepping for clean eating.
Do you know approximately how many calories would be in a serving?
No, I’m sorry, I don’t have the nutritional info.
I used store-bought Mediterranean Herb feta because in place of plain feta because that’s what I had around….SO GOOD. Will definitely make these again!
Really good, I ate them with spinach and ricotta cheese ravioli’s and tomato sauce and it was amazing!
I have a roll of ground Buffalo that someone gave me and I don’t know what to do with it. I wonder if these would be good with that instead of turkey?
Hmm, I don’t know. I’ve had buffalo only a handful of times in my life and they were all over 25 years ago so I don’t remember what it tastes like! Haha!
These are so amazing! I added a little cumin and coriander to the meatball mixture and they taste EXACTLY. LIKE. A GYRO. I made homemade tzatziki with fresh dill and made gyro bowls with them—quinoa, tomato, kalamata olive, artichoke hearts, and avocado. So delicious and healthy!
Has any one tried using instant potato flakes instead of bread crumbs to make them gluten free?
Use gluten free crackers, smash them into crumbs in ziplock bag
Perfect suggestion!
Loved this – really satisfying and it came together super quick. I served it with some pasta and zucchini as pictured and it’s perfect for meal prep. I did cook it in the oven at 400 for 20 minutes and it came out great. Thank you!
Thank you for posting this, Rachel. I prefer baking meatballs as well, so I am glad to see that this recipe will work in the oven. :-)
They were a hit as an appetizer at my cousin’s baby shower. I served them with pizza sauce on the side for dipping.
Do you think there is something I could replace the spinach with? Or leave it out entirely? I’m not the biggest fan of it but I really want to try these! Thanks 🙂
You can just leave it out. :)
I used sauteed onions.
I added some Greek seasoning and served the meatballs over wild rice, with a spinach salad on the side.
So so good! Great flavor, easy to make. Been eating them for a light lunch with 6 meatballs and marinara sauce.
These have quickly become a staple in our house and we can’t get enough of them! So delicious and super easy on a weeknight.
These were delicious and very easy to make! I love how versatile meatballs are, and this version is so easy to pull together quickly (no chopping up onions or mincing herbs). And I’m obsessed with feta, so they brought a great flavor to the meatballs. My boyfriend said they were “life changing,” no joke. Definitely will make these again, especially for meal prepping.
Delicious! I didn’t have breadcrumbs, so I used almond meal that I ground from blanched almonds and they came out great. They were definitely a bit more “wet” than if using breadcrumbs, but with some TLC the end result was nice. :) These are going on the rotation!
These meatballs have become an absolute STAPLE for me since I first made them. I’ve made them at least 8 times already. I usually make them on a Sunday night for dinner, and then pack up the leftovers into containers along with some brown rice, marinara and sauteed veggies. That gives me 4 days of healthy lunches for the work week which is perfect. Thanks for the awesome recipe. Also, pro tip, try these with the Mediterranean seasoned feta from Trader Joes. So good.
After cooking, how long will they last in the freezer do you think?
I try to use up my cooked food within 3 months. They just decline in quality slowly over time, and it can vary a lot depending on the individual conditions in your freezer. For food safety, the USDA recommends 2-6 months for leftovers.
Made this for dinner tonight, only used ground chicken instead of turkey. 20-ish minutes in the oven at 400, followed by a few minutes under the broiler to crisp the outside. Delicious. Looking forward to leftovers wrapped in a pita with some tzatziki sauce.
I’m planning on combining some of the elements of this recipe with an eggplant meatball recipe I love. Obviously it will take some tweaking, but the flavor combination sounds great!
Made these with chicken tonight. Estimated the conversions to metric for the weight of the spinach. Had to add more bread crumbs because of the moisture in the chicken and egg. Cooked them in the frying pan then about 5 minutes in the oven to keep warm and finish cooking through. Ate mine on toast with artichoke hearts under the meatballs and broiled it in the oven to finish.
Wish measurements were is oz and grams/ml would make it easier for those of us outside of the US to use.
These are really yummy! I actually baked them like someone else tried at 400 for about 18 minutes. My picky boyfriend even really liked them. Healthy food for the win!
These were a HUGE hit at dinner last night! I baked mine at 375 instead of pan frying. Served them over rice with tzatziki sauce. DELISH!!!
This was soooo easy and both my kiddos loved it and my 8 year old son even complimented how good the meatballs were…SCORE!
Made these tonight and they were a hit. Happy to find a fun and different way to incorporate greens.
Made this with great success! I also put a little bit of fennel seeds to half a batch and it really elevated the flavor – would recommend if you have them at hand. Also my first couple batches tasted bitter so I switched out frying in olive oil with a more neutral oil and it was the best batch!
these are sooo good! i meal prepped them and ate them throughout the week. they last really well in the fridge and most of the time i get tired of whatever i make by the end of the week, but not these! i will definitely be making more.
These were delicious and I can see myself making them often. I used baby spinach, and baked for 20 minutes at 400. So flavorful! I entered the ingredients into the MyFitnessPal recipe builder, and 4 servings (6 meatballs per serving) came out to 245 calories, 26g/16g/3g protein/fat/carbs) Note: this is calculated using only 1T of olive oil instead of 2 since I baked them).
I’ve already made these 2 times in a week, they’re that good! Toddler and husband approved. I did slightly vary them. I thawed frozen spinach in the microwave instead of using fresh. I also didn’t have an egg, so I skipped that. Like another person did, I cooked them in the oven at 400 for 30 minutes since I made mine slightly bigger (about 12 meatballs total). Served with spaghetti and marinara sauce. Thanks for a great recipe!
how long do you think these will keep in the fridge uncooked?
I believe the maximum suggested refrigeration time for raw ground meat is 1-2 days. But the less time the better.
These were great! Did make a couple alterations:
-used crumbled goat cheese instead of feta
-baked them for about 20 min at 400 (per someone else’s suggestion)
Served with pasta and homemade red sauce. Will definitely make again!
If I use ground beef with a higher fat content (85% lean, 15% fat) would it be okay to omit the egg?
No, unfortunately fat doesn’t bind the same way that the proteins in the egg do. But I did make a batch of these without egg or the breadcrumbs and while they did work, they weren’t as juicy or tender as regular meatballs. They were more like tiny burgers. :)
Thank you for such nice recipes :)
Too crumbly? The flavor is great, they just turned into more of a chunky meat sauce when I added them (carefully) into some spaghetti sauce. Is this just a thing that turkey meatballs do, or is there a way I can fix it next time?
Hmm, I wonder if it’s the type of turkey you used. Do you know what the fat content was? Maybe dark meat is more crumbly than white meat? The egg and breadcrumbs should have helped them bind together well.
These were really good. My only complaint, I didn’t double the recipe, but I will next time. My boyfriend asked what was in them I told him to just eat them and enjoy. He is not in the vegetables.
Made these tonight and they were awesome! I guess my feta was pretty salty, maybe next time I’ll add a little less to the mix. Served with roasted cauliflower and marinara sauce.
Looks yummy! This may be a silly question, but can you say a little more about sauteing the zucchini that was pictured on the side? I’m relatively new to zucchini-coooking and have mostly roasted mine in chunks or spears, so sauteing them is a new idea (and I’m guessing would be a lot faster than roasting). How long do they take to saute? Do you add olive oil or anything to the pan? Thanks!
Sure, no problem! There was still some oil and browned bits left in the skillet from the meatballs, so I didn’t add any extra. I did turn the heat up just slightly so that the super hot pan would brown the edges before the zucchini had a chance to wilt and let out all their water. The zucchini also picked up some of the browned bits from the meatballs, which gave them extra flavor. I don’t remember exactly how long I sautéed them, but that can vary quite a bit with the size of the zucchini pieces and the amount of heat in the pan. But it’s super fast and easy, promise!
I made these but with the yogurt sauce for your spinach/feta turkey burgers…even used gf crumbs, and still came out delicious! With the sauce on top and some thinly sliced cucumbers, it was actually perfect for me on a summer night. Thanks for sharing your wonderful talent with us–your recipes are fab!
Delicious. Followed recipe as written except 5 oz. of spinach. Served with a pan sauce as you make in herb Butter Chicken Thighs. Really good!
One word–YUM!! I tend to avoid ground turkey, but used it for this recipe and followed it to the letter. I did bake these–about 20 minutes at 400 degrees for 1 inch balls. I used cooking spray on the sheet pan and sprayed the meatballs so they would brown since there is so little fat in them. I have no patience to fry or saute meatballs in a skillet. For the person who wanted to sub the cheese, Havarti or Jack cheese would be good, too, but Feta’s slow melt quality and salty taste make it perfect. Mexican queso fresco is similar and I tend to use that and feta interchangeably. Grated Parmesan or Romano would work and I usually add some of either to breadcrumbs anyway–but there wouldn’t be any little lumps of delicious melty cheese in the meatballs. This recipe is genius! Inexpensive and freezable for later use. Keep them coming, Beth.
Thanks for supplying the baking info – I was going to ask if they could be baked!
These look amazing! Can we get some nutritional info? Calories, fat, sodium, etc. Some of us have to be pretty vigilant about what we eat.
I’m sorry, I do not have a reliable source for the nutritional information. The online calculators and databases that most websites rely can be highly inaccurate, so I do not feel comfortable providing information that can not be verified.
This was easy and delicious go to meal. You can play with ingredients to your liking. My husband was in heaven with meal plan.
What cheese can i substitute for the feta?
Mozzarella would also be good. :)
Beth, would crumbled goat cheese work in place of feta? I have some in the fridge and would love to be able to just swap it in instead of buying feta.
It might work, but goat cheese is usually a LOT softer than feta, so it may not be as easy to mix into the meat mixture, if that makes sense!
These meatballs look amazing!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
I can’t wait to make this recipe this weekend! I love feta cheese, and they look so good!