Avocado-Stuffed Turkey Meatballs {Whole30}

When I first started my Whole30 meal planning, I figured that meatballs of various varieties would be a staple of my lunches this month.  They’re easy to make ahead for the entire week, pack along with some veggies and reheat at work.  And of course when I saw avocado-stuffed meatballs, I knew that’s where I had to start.  You can really use any kind of meat for these – pork, beef, lamb, bison – I just happened to have a Costco size package of ground turkey in my freezer.  If you’re using a firmer meat, you can also roll by hand and pan-fry these if you prefer.  I chose to go with the mini muffin tin because my meat mixture didn’t look like it would have held together.

Avocado-Stuffed Turkey Meatballs

Adapted from The Healthy Foodie

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lb lean ground turkey
• 5-6 cloves roasted garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp spicy mustard
• 1 large egg
• ½ tsp fine sea salt
• ¼ tsp ground pepper
• ¼ tsp cumin
• ¼ tsp cinnamon
• ¼ tsp cardamom
• ¼ tsp ground ginger
• ½ diced yellow onion
• ½ ripe avocado, peeled and cut into 16 pieces
• Coconut or olive oil to grease pan

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a food processor, add the garlic, mustard , egg, salt, pepper, and spices and process into a puree.
2. Add that to a medium mixing bowl along with ground turkey and onions and knead well with your hands until uniformly blended.
3. Brush a mini muffin pan with coconut oil.  Scoop the turkey mixture into 16 muffin tins.  Indent with thumb and place a piece of avocado in the dimple.  meatball and place a piece of avocado in that dimple.  Delicately work the meat around that piece of avocado to completely encase it.
4. Bake at 375F for 15-20 minutes, or until done.  Let cool and transfer to a paper towel to collect grease.

Makes 16 meatballs, 3-4 servings

Johanna