Vegan Cranberry Meatballs (Sweet & Tangy)
These Vegan Cranberry Meatballs are perfect for the holiday season! Solid veggie meatballs in a sweet and tangy cranberry sauce, with tips on how to make them perfect. Great for appetisers too!
Ingredients
Tangy & Sweet Cranberry Sauce
- 14 ounces cranberry sauce canned, fresh or frozen works
- 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
Vegan Meatballs Base
- 1 cup roasted cauliflower (instructions below) (226g)
- 1 cup cooked quinoa (137g)
- 2 Bob's Red Mill Egg Replacers OR flax eggs if flax eggs, less one tablespoon of liquid per flax egg
- ½ cup red onion, finely diced (114g)
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup breadcrumbs gluten free if needed
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce or liquid aminos
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary or thyme or both
- 1 ½ tablespoons oil any oil works, such as coconut or olive oil
Instructions
Tangy & Sweet Cranberry Sauce
- Mix all the ingredients together, bring to a boil, then to a medium low heat in a sauce pan until completely incorporated, about 3-5 minutes. Stir occasionally. Set aside until ready to use.
Vegan Meatballs Base
- Preheat oven to 450°F/230°C. Cut the cauliflower's stem off, and cut into even-sized florets. Drizzle the cauliflower with maybe a teaspoon of oil. Roast the cauliflower for 15-20 minutes in the oven. Remove and allow to cool for a few minutes.
- In a food processor, add the cauliflower and pulse it until it's completely riced. Remove from the food processor. You only need 1 cup of this for this recipe and 8 ounces should make about 1 cup.
- Add the 1 cup of riced cauliflower and all the other meatball ingredients (cooked quinoa, eff replacer, red onion, ground black pepper, sea salt, garlic, breadcrumbs, dried oregano, light soy sauce and dried rosemary) EXCEPT the oil.
- You can pulse them or mix them together until they form into a tight ball, combining everything. You want to ensure they are so mixed together that you're not seeing individual cauliflower or quinoa florets, it's all one big mixture. That's how you'll ensure the meatballs will hold together!
- Heat the oil in a pan over medium-high heat. While it's heating, use a tablespoon measurer to form one raw meatball and shape into a ball with your fingers. You can place them on a plate while the oil heats.
- Add one meatball to test the oil. Cook on one side for about 1-2 minutes, turning on all sides onto fully cooked inside and out, about 4 minutes. You can add as many meatballs as can fit in the pan without overcrowding it, cooking them all for about 4-5 minutes turning on each side, to cook them through.
- Lower/turn the heat off. Prep the sauce either in this cooled down pan, or in a separate pan then add the meatballs to it as in the sauce directions. You can enjoy these vegan meatballs alone, in a nice hoagie or with cauliflower rice or quinoa on the side, you know, for a double down. You could even have them on toothpicks as an appetiser at your parties! Enjoy!
Video
Notes
You can also use pre-packaged cauliflower rice! Just squeeze out any and all excess liquid and toast it in your frying pan for a few minutes first to remove any leftover liquid. For freezing, freeze these meatballs without the sauce on. Them allow them to thaw, crisp them up again in the pan, and then coat in the sauce. These meatballs will last in your fridge for up to a week (assuming your cauliflower/base ingredients are fresh, of course!).
If you’re soy free, you can use coconut aminos or vegan Worcestershire sauce!
Nutrition
Calories: 123kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 334mg | Potassium: 150mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 36IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 27mg | Iron: 1mg