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Vegan Gluten-Free Quinoa Kale Meatballs (high protein)

Vegan gluten-free quinoa kale meatballs are great no meat “meatballs.” They are very high in protein thanks to the combination of quinoa, white beans and nutritional yeast

high protein quinoa kale meatballs on zucchini noodles in a white bowl

Easy High-Protein Quinoa Kale Meatballs

Sometimes a food blogger feels compelled to post a recipe, even if she does not quite know what else to say, besides “ta-da!”

I planned the last week of meals carefully; not so tonight. By the time the light had gone, the evening was underway and my supper ideas were scarce. I headed to the refrigerator, peered in, and found an assortment of odds and ends, including some leftover cooked quinoa, half a bell pepper, some kale, a handful of baby carrots, and a few zucchini.

What to do with that? Something relatively quick, without an additional trip to the store. I pulled out the aforementioned quinoa and vegetables and set to work.

Something meaty, but without meat, suddenly seemed just the thing, What about quinoa meatballs? I gathered a few more bits & pieces from the pantry, and, with Nick playing in another room with Kevin, the kitchen felt transformed to a haven of plain dealing, the tile floor, smooth counters, and utensils a guarantee of good things. All at once, my off-the-cuff dinner switched from exertion to ease.

In under an hour, dinner was served and glasses of wine (and one sippy cup of milk) poured. There was no fanfare, no exclamations of joy from Kevin or Nick, nor accompanying pride from me. But we cleaned our plates. Ta-da! Happy eats, everybody!

high protein quinoa kale meatballs on zucchini noodles in a white bowl

Tip

I like to use my medium cookie scoop to make the meatballs. The scoop keeps the meatballs uniform in size (for even cooking) and eliminates a considerable amount of time and mess.

Happy cooking!

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high protein quinoa kale meatballs on zucchini noodles in a white bowl

Vegan Quinoa Kale Meatballs {high protein, easy}

Yield: 24 medium meatballs
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour

Vegan Gluten-Free Quinoa Kale Meatballs are great no meat "meatballs." They are very high in protein thanks to the combination of quinoa, white beans and nutritional yeast

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon (15 mL)  olive oil
  • 1/2 cup chopped onion
  • 1/2 cup chopped orange or red bell pepper
  • 1/2 cup peeled chopped carrot
  • 3 cups stemmed, chopped kale
  • 1 pound white or brown mushrooms, trimmed, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon dried Italian herb seasoning
  • 1 15-ounce can cannellini (white) beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1-1/4 cups cooked quinoa (can be hot or cold)
  • 1/3 cup almond meal or almond flour
  • 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
  • 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onions, bell pepper and carrot; cook and stir for 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms, kale nd Italian seasoning; cook and stir for 5 to 6 minutes Cool slightly.
  3. In a food processor, pulse the mushroom mixture, using on/off pulses, until beans are just broken down and mixture is chopped (do not puree). Transfer to a large bowl.
  4. Add the quinoa, almond flour and nutritional yeast; stir to combine.
  5. Shape mixture into meatballs (I used a medium-size cookie scoop) spacing evenly apart on prepared baking sheet.
  6. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes until golden brown. Serve with your favorite pasta, vegetable noodles, or any way you like!

Notes

Storage: The cooled meatballs can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days, or the freezer for up to 6 months.

Nutrition Information
Serving Size 4 meatballs
Amount Per Serving Calories 195Total Fat 7.5gSaturated Fat 0.6gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 0gCholesterol 0mgSodium 243mgCarbohydrates 26.4gFiber 6.3gSugar 3.5gProtein 10.5g

Did you make this recipe?

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Camilla

Friday 4th of April 2008

Mercy, you're killing me with the cupcake scenario :). I am sure your class loved them! I wish I could have been a fly on the wall while the filling of tins,removal of cakes from said tins, and frosting was occurring--did Paul help? Hee hee, I imagine you were flaming mad :)!

Camilla

Friday 4th of April 2008

Hey Karen and Jenny,

Thank you both so much!

Karen

Friday 4th of April 2008

This meal looks like something I'd love to make (and eat). I just started eating quinoa and really love it! Keep those creative juices flowing and thanks for sharing - you are one talented girl!

mercy

Thursday 3rd of April 2008

Well, *I* would have lavished praise on your meal! It looks yummy. To keep my comment food related, let me tell you what I'm doing in class today. We're reading an early eighteenth-century writer, Eliza Haywood, who writes on love & lust. So, the selection for today was called "the Tea Table" -- and I brought all my tea accoutrements for us to have a cup of tea (there are only 10 in the class).

The problem is (as K would say), I wanted to make some sort of nibble, and everything seemed too complicated (or I didn't have the ingredients). So, I thought -- how easy are cupcakes? And, hey! I have these cute little muffin tins. . . 97 stupid, time-consuming, teeny cupcakes later (ICED, no less!), I feel like a total idiot. And the students are probably going to think it's childish & all kindergarten-y. ARRGH!

Jenny

Thursday 3rd of April 2008

The same thing happens at my house quite often. Some nights, I just don't feel motivated or have the time to get an extravagant dinner on the table, so I just start pulling things out of the fridge to see what I come up with. Your dinner looks good to me, glad your family cleaned their plates!!

Darn, I'll have to watch my tivo'd Top Chef tomorrow night, it's getting late. Love that show!

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