these tender baked lentil “meatballs” utilize pre-steamed lentils so they come together in a matter of minutes making for an easy meatless dinner or lunch the whole family will love.
The last time I was at Trader Joe’s I grabbed a box of pre-steamed lentils. These were one of my favorite affordable protein options during grad school and it had been ages since I last had some!
More than just an excellent source of protein, lentils are also rich in fiber, iron, folate and potassium. Not too shabby for an affordable and easy to prepare option, right?!
While I have no problem just tossing these lentils into pasta, salads and even grain bowls, I wanted to do something a little different this time around.
In particular, I wanted to do something hand held that maybe had a little veggie snuck into it so that I could utilize these for Owen as well as myself.
Out of that was born these deliciously easy baked lentil meatballs. I took my favorite turkey meatball recipe and with a few slight tweaks, made it a delicious meatless option.
The longest part of pulling this dish together is the 15 or so minutes that they’re baking in the oven. If that alone doesn’t make you excited about these, then the incredible aromas wafting up as you pull them together will.
Lightly sautéed garlic and shallots combine with traditional Italian flavors like oregano and parmesan for a meatless dish that will definitely measure up to even the best Italian grandmother’s high standards.
I even managed to get a minced carrot in there so if you decide not to serve this over a bed of carrot and zucchini noodles, you’re still getting some veggies!
Top with your favorite marinara sauce and some fresh parmesan cheese and you’ve got yourself a filling weeknight meal that’s loaded with nutrition!
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baked lentil “meatballs”
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 15–20 meatballs, depending on size rolled 1x
- Category: Main Course
Description
these tender baked lentil “meatballs” utilize pre-steamed lentils so they come together in a matter of minutes making for an easy meatless dinner or lunch the whole family will love.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups steamed lentils (I used Trader Joe’s)
- 1 shallot, peeled & roughly chopped
- 2–3 cloves garlic, peeled & roughly chopped
- 1 medium carrot, roughly chopped
- 1 large egg
- 1–2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 3–4 tablespoons favorite marinara sauce
- 1/4 – 1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs (start with 1/4 cup, if mixture is wet once all combined, add more, 1 tablespoon at a time, until you can form a ball)
- 1/4 – 1/3 cup finely shredded parmesan cheese
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Olive oil
- Optional for serving: pasta, carrot & zucchini noodles, marinara sauce, fresh parmesan and minced fresh basil for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper
- Add a drizzle of olive oil to a sauté pan over medium heat and place minced shallot and onion in, sautéing for ~2 minutes or until fragrant and lightly browned.
- Add sautéed garlic and shallots to a food processor along with carrot and process until minced.
- Add lentils, egg, oregano, marinara, breadcrumbs, cheese, a sprinkle of salt & pepper and process until well combined. If needed, add additional breadcrumbs (enough so that you can form a ball)
- Using a cookie scoop (my favorite meatball making trick!), scoop out ~2 tablespoons of the lentil mixture, rolling gently into a ball and place onto parchment lined baking sheet. Continue until you have used up the entire lentil mixture.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until lentil meatballs are browned and firm to a gentle touch.
- Allow to cool on the pan for at least 5 minutes (this helps them set up) before serving.
- Serve over your favorite pasta or with some carrot & zucchini noodles. Top with your favorite marinara sauce, a sprinkle of fresh parmesan cheese and freshly chopped basil.
Notes
- Lentil meatballs will keep up to 4 days in an airtight container in the fridge and will freeze well for up to 2 months.
Keywords: meatballs, lentil, vegetarian, meatless, dinner
Hello Cait! These look amazing! If we dont happen to have a trader joes can we sub for fresh cooked or canned lentils? Thank you!
Hi Ashley, yes! You may also be able to find steamed lentils in the produce section of your local grocery store. But if not, you can definitely cook them at home and sub into the recipe 🙂