Recipe Collab: Toasted Quinoa Vegan Meatballs

Toasted Quinoa and lentils combine to make a protein-packed meat substitute perfect for Meatless Monday or any day. You could toss these meatballs in a traditional red sauce and serve them with pasta, but we opted for a vegan mushroom gravy sauce made with bouillon from our friends at Bou. 

Serves 3 or approximately 15 meatballs in total. 

Ingredients:

Toasted Quinoa Vegan Meatballs:

• 1 cup cooked I Heart Keenwah Toasted Quinoa (White or Tricolor) (cooled)
• 1 cup cooked green lentils (cooled)
• 1 cup almond flour
• 1 tbsp onion powder
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp dried basil
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp mustard powder
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika (aka Spanish pimenton)
• sprinkling of sea salt and fresh ground pepper (to taste)
• olive oil

Mushroom Gravy Sauce:

• 2 cubes BOU Mushroom Gravy bouillon 
• 1 cup chopped mushrooms
• 1.5 cups water
• olive oil
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 2 sprigs of fresh thyme

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Pulse the lentils, quinoa, almond flour, onion powder, garlic powder, basil, thyme, mustard powder, nutritional yeast, paprika, salt and pepper in a food processor until a course paste-like dough is achieved.
3. Roll dough into meatball shapes by hand (approximately 1 tbsp per meatball) and place on prepared baking tray. Brush with olive oil and bake for 25 minutes (turning the meatballs halfway through the cooking process).
4. In a separate pan, sauté mushrooms in olive oil until lightly browned.
5. Add water and bring mixture to a boil.
6. Place bullion cubes in a fine-mesh sieve and gently whisk through the sieve into the water. A thick gravy should form.
7. Finish with lemon juice and fresh thyme and remove from heat.
8. Coat vegan meatballs in warm mushroom gravy sauce.