Party-Worthy Meatball Pastries
Ingredients
Pastry Shells
- 2 9-oz. boxes of dry pie crust mix
- ½ cup cold butter (cubed)
- 4-6 tbsp. cold water
Pork Meatballs
- 1 egg (beaten)
- 1 slice whole wheat bread
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese
- ¾ tsp. dried basil or 1 ½ tbsps. finely chopped fresh basil
- 1 garlic glove (minced)
- 12 oz. of ground turkey
- 12 fl. oz. low sodium broth.
Cranberry Sauce
- 12 oz. Cranberries
- 1 cup 100% Cranberry Juice
- 1 cup 100% Pure Maple Syrup
- juice from ½ of a lemon
- zest of the whole lemon
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- Mix pie crust according to package directions and then cover with a damp cloth to rest in a ball while making the meatballs.
- In a medium sized bowl combine all the ingredients for the meatballs and then shape into 12 even sized balls. Pour the broth in a sauce pan and bring it to a boil. Place meatballs in the broth, cover, turn down heat and simmer for about 10-12 minutes.
- Begin preparing the cranberry sauce by placing all the ingredients in a medium sized sauce pan. Stir together and turn heat on high until it reaches a boil. Be sure to stir constantly. Once the mixture comes to a constant boil, turn the heat down to medium low and continue cooking for about 10 minutes until the sauce thickens. Remove from heat.
- Once the meatballs are done cooking, remove the pan from the heat, but leave the meatballs in the broth.
- Spray a 12 count muffin tin with spray. Roll out the pastry crust to about ¼" thick. Using a biscuit cutter or a glass, cut out 12- 2 " rounds. Place one round in each muffin hole being sure that some of the crust is worked up the side. Place in the oven and cook for 5 minutes. (Do not let the crust brown or cook completely). Remove from the oven immediately.
- Assemble the pastries by putting one meatball in each muffin whole, and then topping liberally with the cranberry sauce.
- Place the muffin pan back in the oven and cook for an additional 8-10 minutes or until the crust is browned and the sauce is bubbly.
Notes
- Instead of maple syrup, substitute with 1/3 cup of honey or 1/3 cup brown sugar.
- Instead of lemon, substitute the juice and zest with a lime.
- Instead of ground turkey, substitute with ground pork.