Easy Baked Meatballs with Tomato Dipping Sauce

I am on Day 3 without Charlie... if you wanted to know if I am still doing okay here is your notice that I am. :) There are two activities in this world that almost always make me happy and they are cooking and working out....therefore I am doing both every day this week.
This past weekend members of my box got together to celebrate one of the owner's birthdays. We played euchre, ate great food and chatted late into the night. After spending another night with everyone I came to a conclusion...The people at Maven are good people.

This is a picture of my dad, my boyfriend Rudy, and me showing off our guns because my dad's nickname is "Pipes" due to the muscles he has at his age (and by that I mean he's obviously really young.)

These meatballs are what I brought to the party. I did half wrapped in bacon and the other half without because some people there don't eat bacon (say what?!) I also brought two dipping sauces... one that was a combination of dates, lime juice, coconut aminos, chili flakes and water. The other is listed with the recipe below. I used red onion in mine because I had one to use up, but use whatever you have! I hate making extra trips to the store so improvise with what you have. I use my cookie scoop (about a tablespoon) when I make them so they are all the same size which means they bake evenly.

If you are wrapping them in bacon, cut a piece of bacon in thirds and wrap 1/3 around each meatball. Bake the same way and broil at the very end to make them crispier.

I ate mine over spaghetti squash, but may I recommend zucchini noodles (zoodles) instead?.... they are in season right now!

Easy Baked Meatballs

- 1 lb grass-fed Beef (makes 24-26 meatballs)

- 1/2 Onion, finely chopped

- 2 Garlic Cloves, minced

- 1 Tbsp Fat or oil

- 1 Tbsp Coconut Aminos (or gluten-free soy sauce)

-  1/2 tsp Paprika

- 1/2 tsp Salt 

- 1/4 tsp Pepper

- 1 egg

- 1 Tbsp Coconut Flour 

- 1/8 tsp Cayenne Pepper

- 1/2 tsp Cumin

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

1. Over medium heat, saute the onion and garlic in the fat/oil until translucent. Set aside to cool. 

2. Combine and spices, flour and egg in a large bowl. Mix until well combined. Add the beef and cooled onions/garlic. Mix with your hands until just combined... don't over mix or you'll have tough balls. 

3. Using a scoop or your eyes, make roughly 25 meatballs, about 1 Tbsp a piece. I put mine on a rack on a cookie sheet to catch the drippings, but just a cookie sheet would work fine. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Serve immediately, freeze for up to 2 months, or keep in the fridge up to 5 days.  

Tomato Dipping Sauce 

I use this for sauce instead of spaghetti sauce with my meatballs, but also brought it as a dipping sauce to a party. 

- 1 can 14-oz Crushed Tomatoes (or diced if you have those)

- 2 Tbsp Tomato Paste

- 2 Tbsp Coconut Aminos or gluten-free soy sauce

- 1/4 Cup Water

- 1 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar

- 2 Tbsp Raw Honey

- 1/4 tsp Pepper

- 1/4 tsp Garlic Powder

1. In a sauce pan over medium-high heat, whisk the ingredients together and bring to a boil. Reduce to low and simmer 15 minutes. Taste to see if you need to add more salt.