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Lentil Meatballs with Burst Tomato Pasta
dozen
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup lentils, brown or green
- 1 1/4 cup water
- 1 tbsp olive oil, plus more for brushing
- 1/3 cup onion, red; diced
- 1 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup carrot, shredded
- 1/4 cup pecans, crushed
- 1/4 cup walnuts, crushed
- 1/4 cup panko crumbs, whole wheat
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp basil, dried
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper, black
- 1 large eggs
- 1 pound tomatoes, cherry
- 2 tsps olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 8 oz pasta, whole wheat
- 1 oz asiago cheese, shredded
- 2 tbps basil, minced fresh
- olive oil, to serve
Instructions
- Combine lentils and water in a medium pot. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook until lentils are tender, 23 to 25 minutes. If lentils are not tender and water has been absorbed, add more water and continue to cook. Drain off any excess water.
- Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-low heat and add the red onion. Cook until onion is translucent and fragrant, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and carrots, cooking for another 2 to 3 minutes.
- In a food processor, combine the cooked lentils, onion mixture, nuts, panko, herbs, salt, and pepper. Pulse a few times to start combining the mixture. Crack the egg in and pulse a few more times until the mixture is combined but the lentils are still holding shape. Set aside and let rest while the oven preheats to 425˚.
- Combine cherry tomatoes with 2 teaspoons olive oil and chopped garlic. Place in the oven and let cook until tomatoes have released their juices and 'burst', 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.
- Once tomatoes are in the oven, take the lentil mixture and roll into 12 balls, roughly the size of a golfball. Place on a baking tray covered with parchment paper and brush with olive oil. Bake meatballs until browning and crisp, 25 to 30 minutes.
- Cook pasta according to package and drain. When ready to assemble, combine the pasta with the burst tomatoes, meatballs, shredded cheese, and basil. Drizzle with olive oil and toss everything together to serve.
- *if you would like more of a sauce than the burst tomatoes, pulse the tomatoes with a bit of olive oil, basil, and cheese before assembling.
Notes
Recipe by Naturally Ella
Comments
This was time intensive but yummy. I’m allergic to nuts and wheat, so I used sunflower seeds and pumpkins seeds and gluten free bread crumbs instead, and it was good. I will make more meatballs and freeze them to use in wraps and maybe with some BBQ sauce in future.
This was less work than I thought it would be and the result was very tasty. I made it pretty much exactly as in the recipe. The “meatballs” were a little dry which surprised me because they seemed moist as I was forming them. The instructions implied they should be cooked at 425 like the tomatoes. The next time, I would turn the oven down to 350 to see if that works better.
How many people does this recipe feed? The “serves” counter starts at one dozen which I presume is the target meatballs.
Hi Gail, yes the recipe as is will create 12 meatballs. Depending on how many meatballs each person wants to eat, you could serve up to 6 (2 each)!