Holiday Bites: Turkey Cranberry Cocktail Meatballs
I read this inspirational quote somewhere recently. It goes something like this: You can’t control everything that happens, but you can control how you react to whatever happens. Or, you know, something better-phrased. But you get the idea. Things happen. You have a choice about how to deal with those things.
Well, folks–it’s late November, and the thing that’s about to happen is…dum dum DUM….the holiday season!
That’s right. It’s that magical time of year when friends and loved ones visit from near and far, bearing glad tidings and rubbing their hands together, intent on judging both your housekeeping, your cooking, and if you have kids, your parenting. (Or if you don’t have kids, commence pestering you when you are going to have kids already.) You know–because it isn’t stressful enough to have a house full of people. It’s an even better idea to be forced to feed them elaborate meals while also keeping your kitchen looking like you were not just robbed (by robbers carrying open sacks of flour on their heads for some inexplicable reason).
But according to afore-mentioned inspirational quote, the good news is that you get to choose how to deal with this holiday-induced stress. My recommendation? Keep it simple.
And so I bring to you the first in a maybe-three-part series featuring simple holiday bites which can be thrown together either in advance or at the very last minute, intended to help keep you sane and your friends and loved ones well-fed. And we will begin with one of the best things I’ve invented recently:
Make-Ahead Turkey Cranberry Cocktail Meatballs
When I was growing up in the 80s, one of my mom’s party staples was cocktail meatballs. Everyone loved them, including me. Imagine my shock and surprise when later in life, I learned how simple they are to make–and how disgusting the ingredients sounded.
My mom’s original recipe was simple–traditional beef meatballs, cooked in the microwave (seriously), and covered in a sauce made from one jar of Kraft Chili Sauce and one jar of Smucker’s grape jelly. I’ve kept the spirit of her original meatballs while giving them a decidedly holiday twist.
Ingredients
2 pounds ground turkey
2 slices bread
2ish tbsp milk
dash Worcestershire sauce
dash dijon mustard
1 can jellied cranberry sauce
1/2 bottle BBQ sauce*
Directions
Warning: I’m going to use the word ‘balls’ a lot. Deal with it. Giggling is acceptable.
- Pulverize bread in food processor (alternately, rip into small bits with your hands.)
- Combine bread, milk, Worcestershire, and dijon to form a sort of slurry. Allow to sit for five minutes.
- Add ground turkey to slurry mixture.
- Form into small balls, place on parchment paper lined baking sheet.
- Bake balls at 375 for fifteen to twenty minutes, depending upon size of balls.
- Place cooked balls in slow cooker. Set to low.
- Dump can of cranberry sauce and half bottle of BBQ sauce over balls.
- Cook until cranberry sauce melts and combines. Then cook a little longer. Enjoy.
Substitution Options
-You could definitely do as my mom did and still use the jar of chili sauce instead of the BBQ sauce. I may try it this way next time.
-I chose to use jellied cranberry sauce. I cannot think of a reason why you could not use the whole berry kind. Or, even better, if you make your own cranberry sauce (as I strongly recommend you do) and you have post-holiday leftovers (as I always do) this is a great way to use those.
-If for some reason your grocery store does not sell ground turkey (I suppose that’s possible) you could absolutely use any other form of ground meat. If you are a vegetarian and super awesome, you could even use your favorite ground meat substitute. I like seitan.
There are so many great things about this recipe. For one, it is super easy to make ahead, and is best served directly from a slow cooker, thus freeing up precious stovetop and oven space. And second, it can function as either an appetizer–if served alone–or as a main course. Just add the carbohydrate of your choice. Or, you know, a green salad if you insist upon being healthy and/or you really don’t like your in-laws and want to deny them carb-y holiday goodness.
Note: you can pause this recipe at almost any point if you are making these in advance. I recommend pausing after the balls are cooked–either before or after adding the sauce and heating through. I keep the crock part of my slow cooker right in the refrigerator (or, depending upon how cold it is outside, in my garage) until about an hour before people arrive. I then place the cold crock in the pot, turn it on, and stop thinking about it. Because by that point in the holidays I’m typically drinking. Because that’s also how I deal with things I cannot control.
