So I’m really excited about my garden! Check out my pics below. Everything’s planted, everything’s green (mostly green), one of my baby tomatoes is starting to ripen, and I feel a totally new and deep connection with nature. I walk around barefoot…wake up with the sun… only eat what I plant myself….
Just kidding. More like ruin my slippers watering my plants at 8 am after I stumble out of bed with coffee dripping down my face and pray that my little red pepper plant can withstand some unintentional tough love.
I ended up planting 3 different kinds of tomato plants, 2 basil plants, 1 thyme plant, 1 parsley, 2 peppers, 1 eggplant…. and a pumpkin! Only the spacing for the pumpkin said 3 meters and I’m giving it about 2 feet so fingers crossed for this one..let’s hope its a fighter.
My little cherry tomato plant! One of them started to turn red this morning, I was so excited! Maybe a little too excited, I watered the crap out of it…
And then I started to get really camera happy outside, it was a gorgeous evening yesterday and I couldn’t resist snapping some pretty pics in my backyard.
Sun setting on a wild raspberry bush.
So all all of this gardening has totally inspired me to cook up some… buffalo chicken meatballs… yikes! Or not..Sorry First Lady, no veggie salad this time.
I think its all of the sweating…raking… shoveling…it’s made me hungry this week. And when I get hungry I crave comfort food. Turkey burgers, french fries, ketchup…I love bbq season!
So these little Buffalo Chicken Mini Meatballs are the best of both worlds. They’re a fun and lighter way to indulge in buffalo chicken with all of the flavor and a lot more sass. How cute are these?? I think they’re perfect for a bbq party appetizer and they’re so simple and quick.
I saw the original recipe the other morning while I was working out watching Rachael Ray. I don’t usually cook her recipes, not for any particular reason, I just never really think of it. But these little babies jumped at me. I knew I had to recreate them asap!
So I did :) I loved these and so did all my guy friends! Just before careful, these will go quick!
Buffalo Chicken Mini Meatballs
Yields 40 (3/4 inch) mini meatballs
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/3 cup Frank’s Red Hot sauce or any other favorite hot sauce
- 1 pound ground chicken breast
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 celery stalk, minced
- 3/4 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Preheat the oven to 450°F. Coat a 9 x 13- inch baking dish with vegetable oil
- Combine the butter and hot sauce in a small saucepan over low heat, whisking until the butter is melted and fully incorporated. Remove from heat and cool for 10 minutes.
- Combine the ground chicken, hot sauce mixture, egg, celery, bread crumbs, and salt in a large mixing bowl and mix by hand until thoroughly incorporated.
- Roll the mixture into round, 3/4-inch balls, making sure to pack the meat firmly. I used a small ice-cream scoop to make sure I made even balls every time.
- Place the balls in the prepared baking dish, lining them up snugly and in even rows vertically and horizontally to form a grid. The meatballs should be touching one another.
- Roast for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the meatballs are firm and cooked through. A meat thermometer inserted into the center of a meatball should read 165°F.
- Allow the meatballs to cool for 5 minutes in the baking dish before serving.
- Serve with ranch dressing.
That picture of those wild berries is absolutely gorgeous!
And these meatballs have me DROOLING! YUM! Pinned dahling!
Thanks Jen :) !! I was so excited when I found those wild berries, I had no clue they were growing in my backyard (actually they’re more in my neighbors yard than mine but I’ll just pretend like they’re all mine…)
Aww, you`re garden is turning out SO WELL!! Congrats on actually planting them all! These meatballs look super cute and yummy. I love your pictures for these!
Thanks Lynna! :) I”m about to go out and water them right now… I’m really hoping those cherry tomatoes are ready to go!
Your garden looks great! I’m moving to a new place with a deck, and I’m hoping I’ll have enough room for some planters for herbs and maybe a tomato plant like yours. I love little tomatoes – so snackable. But these meatballs – yum. My husband will go nuts for these – he loves buffalo chicken anything. I think I’m going to make some for him with a homemade bleu cheese dressing – his favorite. Thanks for such a fun recipe!
Aw fun! Let me know if you do :) And you could definitely fit in a few planters, up until this year I always did everything on my deck, one of the trees in my backyard grew way too high though last year and theres too much shade to grow anything there this summer, But thats ok! perfect excuse to start my big garden :)
Gardens are so much fun. I got the exact same ones. We put way too many plants in them though. I hope they all still grow. I cannot wait to have fresh, really fresh tomatoes. You meatballs sound delicious. My daddy would love them for a special treat.
I was super nervous about spacing for my plants, thats why the beds look so bare… except for the pumpkin.. the pumpkin’s in trouble :) I’m making them again for my dad tonight, I’m so excited for him to try them out!
You have a raspberry bush! I am SO JEALOUS of your lovely garden :) I want one so badly! And these are great looking meatballs. I’m always partial to food with a high cute factor
Haha okkk well I kind of have a raspberry bush…. I think its technically in my neighbors yard but one of the branches crosses into mine? Totally counts right ? :)
Your garden looks amazing my friend keep at it for sure :D
And you are definitely a daddy’s girl with these meatballs :D
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Hahah thanks Uru! I can always win him over the food :) I’m making those meatballs again tonight with apple pie!
Again, so jealous you have a veggie garden! Those buffalo chicken bites look SO PERFECT for parties! I feel like you’d be the most popular person if you brought them :P
Haha I should totally try, I’ll let you know how it goes. Maybe we can get into some sweet parties then when I move to NYC :)
That would be a first for me lol
Those mini meatballs look so delicious. They would so go down a storm in our household so definitely bookmarking this recipe. Your garden is coming along nicely too. Let’s hope that pumpkin doesn’t grow mahoosive and take over the other plants, LOL.
Haha ugh! I know! I’d be so excited if that pumpkin actually grew though that I’d sacrifice a few tomato plant casualties…. :)
You have been busy in the garden, however, I know that each new growth there is quite a payback. Glad you are enjoying this project!
These mini meatballs do look tasty, hard to resist anything with Franks red sauce-yum! Also, you did an excellent job on the presentation. Delicious post!
I’d never used Franks red sauce before! Had never even heard of it until Rachael Ray, but it totally made these meatballs, they turned out so well. I”m going to double the recipe next time I make them, I gave them to my brother and his friends and they scarfed them down in minutes :)
Those look great. I’d be happy with a plate of those! :)
Your garden looks marvelous!!! And I love the sound of these meatballs…they’d be perfect for a cocktail party :)
Thanks Liz! I can’t wait to try them out again for party!
Oh these sound so good! Bookmarked for football season for sure :) Enjoy that wonderful garden!
I love football season :) These would be so fun, you could probably quadruple the recipe too and just keep em’ all warm in a crock pot or something!
Wow! These sound so delicious! And you’re garden is really coming along well! Great job, K! :)
Thanks! Its getting there! I just pulled off my first little cherry tomato the other day :)
Yeah, here’s the thing. I’m gonna need these… ASAP! They look amazing, and my husband would flip over these spicy little balls.
BTW, don’t cut your thyme down at the end of the year. Mine grows back every year. I discovered this through pure laziness one year when I didn’t cut my garden back in the fall. You’ll have thyme growing back every year. If you cut back all the dead leaves in the early spring, you’ll get all new thyme growth. Exciting, right?
Haha yes! Very exciting! Ok so then what do you know about basil? I vaguely remember hearing that I’m supposed to trim it? Last year I had a basil plant but by the end of the summer it started tasting really bitter, in case you didn’t know it was possible.. it is possible to mess up a basil plant.. :)
You really have to keep basil trimmed. It will turn into a monstrous plant if you let it, but, if you let it, it will go to seed and ruin the flavor and growing capacity of the plant. I hope this helps. Also, oregano and rosemary grow back each year, too.
These are pretty brilliant.
LOVE anything with buffalo sauce! Yum!
look yummy :)
Congratulations on Top 9!! These look delicious! Thanks for sharing, buzzed ya!
yay on the garden! looks great!! and i love love love those meatballs, they are so cute and fun!
aw thanks! we love love loved these at my house too! I’m making them again in a couple weeks as an app for party :)
So impressed with your garden – looks like you’ll have some amazing, fresh veggies to reward you for all the work! And your (veggie-free!) buffalo chicken meatballs sound so yummy – great photos too! :)
Thanks Jen! The only problem is I don’t want to eat my veggies now after all that hard work… :) I just pulled off my first cherry tomatoes and made a little special spot for them on my counter, I can’t get myself to eat them! haha
Your garden is doing so well! Love the looks of these–the hot sauce gives them such amazing color, and I’m sure a great spicy kick!
Haha definitely a spicy kick :) Really good though!
yum these look delicious-I LOVE buffalo flavored anything! And your garden is adorable! I’m jealous but I know I would not keep up with watering it-I have one basil plant that I am hoping I keep alive :)
haha I believe in you :) my garden is right by where I park my car so its the perfect guilt trip to take care of my veggies every time I walk outside haha, so far so good….
Wow, your veggie garden looks perfect! And so do the mini meatballs, I LOVE anything with the word “mini” in it
haha me too! I swear the word ‘mini’ makes everything better
These meatballs are so cute and tasty looking! I love them. Your garden is beautiful. Don’t get to stressed about spacing, you can get away with a bit of crowding, just weed as much as possible and use a good quality fertilizer.
haha ok good! I was getting kinda nervous, especially about my pumpkin :) Since I took that pic I planted two more plants in there two, but they’re just herbs so they shouldn’t take up much room at all?
YUM! And your garden is darling! We have an apartment…once we have a house a garden is one of my first things I am looking forward to! Fresh herbs and tomatoes!
Arantha
You will love having your own little garden! Fresh tomatoes are the best! And I love having a basil plant, I use basil like crazy :)
Congrats my friend, I have awarded you the much deserved Versatile Blogger Award :D
Check it out here: http://gobakeyourself.wordpress.com/2012/06/20/i-love-thee-microwaves/
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Thanks darling!! You are too sweet! Thank you so much :) !
Everything very cute, job well one!
My husband has this crazy buffalo obsession. I bet he would go crazy over these! I love that their mini because I’m not anywhere near the buffalo addict he is. This way, I could still have a few bites without the buffalo overload I get from most of his favorite buffalo dishes. Great recipe Kristina!
Looks delicious! Will try next time I have a get together.
May I suggest a cage for your tomatoes, to keep the plants upright.
And the same with your eggplant, maybe a trellis.
Eggplants can flop over and break very easily.
Goodluck! Love your blog!
Will definitely go pick up a couple more cages for my plants! I have just one around my tomato plant but didn’t even think to put one around my eggplant, thanks for the tips :)
These just look awesome!
Aw thanks Bree! These were a big hit at home!
Hello! Just discovered your blog via the healthy food bloggers group and this recipe in your sidebar caught my eye. I have to say , I know you didn’t originally intend this as a Halloween recipe but I can’t be the only one who saw these and thought, “what cute little pumpkins!” So perfect for a Halloween party :)
Haha yikes.. I might have been the only one that didn’t think little pumpkins when I made these! Such a cute idea! I think I’ll be stealing that for halloween too :)