Mediterranean Meatballs with Lemon Herbed Chickpea Pasta

You know how writers get writers block? Well I sure was low in inspiration this past week for new and exciting meal prep recipes! I got to thinking about my husband and my honeymoon in Greece where we had some of the most delicious Greek and Mediterranean foods! One of the meals we had were meatballs stuffed with all the goodness of herbs, feta cheese and garlic. So I figured this would be a perfect time to meal prep some similar meatballs that are juicy, full of flavor and a hint of a Mediterranean taste!

I made these with a side of lemon herbed chickpea protein pasta which was SO easy to whip up in 15 minutes. Topped with baked veggies and nonfat yogurt sauce make this meal a serious party! To be honest I loved these meatballs so much that I made them twice in one week because they were that good and super easy for meal prep! You don't want to miss out friends, they are impossible not to be a HIT!

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Mediterranean Meatballs:

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs lean ground chicken (you could also do half turkey and half ground beef)

• 2 eggs

• 3/4 cup crushed crackers of your choosing or breadcrumbs (you can crush up gluten free crackers or breadcrumbs!)

• 1/2 cup finely diced red onion

• 6-7 cloves garlic, minced

• 6 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

• 6 tablespoons chopped fresh mint

• 1 teaspoon dried oregano

• 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese (I used a Mediterranean feta cheese and it was amazing!

• 1.5 teaspoon salt

• Freshly ground black pepper

Baked veggies:

Ingredients:

• 1 green bell pepper, sliced

• red bell pepper, sliced

• 1 orange bell pepper, sliced

• 1 red onion, sliced

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• Freshly ground salt and pepper

Lemon Herbed Chickpea Protein Pasta:

Ingredients:

• 1 box @explorecuisine chickpea pasta or @banza chickpea pasta

• 1 teaspoon lemon zest

• 1 Tbsp chopped parsley

• 1-2 garlic cloves, finely minced

• Juice from ½ lemon

• 1-2 tablespoons butter (or olive oil)

• Freshly ground salt and pepper, to taste

• ½ cup pitted and sliced kalamata olives

Greek yogurt feta dip:

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt

• 1/2 cup feta crumbles

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 2 teaspoons lemon juice

• 1 teaspoon lemon zest

• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder

• Freshly ground salt and black pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl, add the ground chicken, eggs, crushed crackers, diced red onion, garlic, parsley, mint, oregano, feta cheese, salt and pepper; use clean hands to form into 24 golf ball sized meatballs. Set aside.

3. In a medium sized bowl add the peppers and onions and drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and freshly ground salt and pepper, and a little bit of garlic powder if desired. Toss together then add veggies to the prepared pan and spread out evenly.

4. In the oven bake both the meatballs and the veggies for 30 minutes.

5. While the meatballs are cooking, make the feta yogurt dip: add yogurt, feta, olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice and garlic powder to the bowl and set aside. If you like smooth sauces- feel free to blend in a food processor although this isn't necessary!

6. Serve! Add the chickpea pasta to a bowl, top with veggies, then the meatballs! Drizzle with the feta yogurt sauce and garnish if desired with more parsley. Enjoy!!

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