Cranberry-Pinot Noir Meatballs

Here’s a recipe that only lasted on my Pinterest board a mere 3 days before making it into the weekly plan.  And with two great football games on last night, meatballs were just the thing to have for dinner.  That, and they involved a bottle of wine, which is always a win in my book.

The original recipe would have been just four ingredients – meatballs, wine, cranberry sauce, and brown sugar, but I chose to make my own meatballs.  I just prefer to control the ingredients that go into them.  I’m sure the recipe would have been just as good if you used packaged meatballs, and honestly, would have taken only about 15 minutes to prepare the entire dish.  My version took about 30 minutes, 20 of which was all bake time, and the meal was still done in no time with little effort.

The sauce for these meatballs was a little sweet, with a nice balance of cranberry and wine.  I did thicken it a little just before adding the meatballs, since mine was a little thin… but I’ll leave that up to you.  And don’t forget – use a bottle of wine you wouldn't mind drinking… especially since the sauce only calls for 1 cup, there’s more than enough for a glass (or two) with dinner (or while making it!). 

I served this over rice with a side of broccoli – a standard combo when I make meatballs.  I love how the rice soaks up the sauce and how the broccoli adds that freshness and green.  Oh and mom: no need to double the sauce, there was more than enough…

Cranberry-Pinot Noir Meatballs

 

Cranberry-Pinot Noir Meatballs

What You Need:

• 1 lb ground turkey
• 1 egg
• ½ c seasoned breadcrumbs
• 6 tbsp milk
• 3 tbsp dried minced onion
• 1 c Pinot Noir
• 1 (16 oz) can whole cranberry Sauce
• 1/2 c brown sugar
• 1 tsp deli (or spicy brown) mustard

How You Do It:

1. To make the meatballs, combine ground turkey, egg, breadcrumbs, milk, and onion.  Mix until just combined.
2. Form into small balls and bake at 400* for 15 min or until cooked through.
3. While meatballs bake, in a saucepan combine cranberry sauce, brown sugar, Pinot Noir, and mustard. Whisk to combine over medium heat. Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes or until mixture has thickened, stirring frequently.
4. Remove from heat and add cooked meatballs.

Cranberry-Pinot Noir Meatballs adapted from Julie's Eats and Treats.