Thanksgiving Turkey Meatballs

Thanksgiving Turkey Meatballs

Makes 20 meatballs

Ingredients:

For the meatballs:

• 2 tablespoons butter or ghee
• 1 large leek, white part only, very finely diced
• 1 celery rib, very finely diced
• ½ cup shredded sweet potato
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon ground sage
• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1 large egg, beaten
• ¼ cup almond flour
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper

For the Quick Pan Gravy:

• 1¾ cups chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons butter or ghee
• 2 tablespoons cassava flour or tapioca starch
• ½-1 teaspoon poultry seasoning (adjust to taste)
• salt and pepper, to taste

For serving:

• Mashed potatoes or cauliflower
• Fresh chopped parsley

Method:

For the Turkey Meatballs:

1. Preheat oven to 375℉ and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter or ghee in a pan over medium heat. Add the leeks, celery, and shredded sweet potato. Cook, stirring frequently, until softened, 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic, thyme, and sage and cook, stirring until fragrant, about 1 minute.
3. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and add the ground turkey, egg, almond flour, cinnamon, salt,and pepper (reserve the pan to make the gravy in). Mix to combine well. Shape the mixture into 20 equal sized meatballs (about 1 heaping tablespoon per meatball). Place the meatballs on the parchment paper lined baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until completely cooked through.

For the quick pan gravy:

1. In a small sauce pan, bring the chicken broth to a simmer.
2. In the same pan the leeks were cooked in, heat the butter  over medium-low heat. Sprinkle cassava flour or  tapioca starch over the butter one tablespoon at a time, constantly whisking, until smooth. Cook for 1 minute, and continue whisking. The mixture should be thick and bubbling.
3. Slowly pour in the hot stock while whisking. The mixture will start to clump, just keep whisking and it will smooth out. Allow the gravy to cook for a few minutes longer to thicken.  Add the poultry seasoning, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Drizzle over turkey meatballs and mashed potatoes or cauliflower and sprinkle with fresh parsley to serve