If you are looking for a great make-ahead, tasty small bite appetizer for your holiday week, these Sweet and Tangy Cranberry Orange Meatballs are festive and have all those holiday flavors we love! You can make the meatballs beforehand and freeze them until you are ready to put all the ingredients in the slow cooker to save you even more time in the kitchen and give you more time to celebrate with family!
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 2 pounds lean ground beef
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs plain
- 1 cup 2% milk
- 2 tablespoon Parmesan cheese grated
Orange Cranberry Sauce
- 1/2 cup jellied cranberry sauce
- 1/2 cup sugar-free orange marmalade with Splenda
- 1 tablespoon dehydrated minced onions
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or spray non-stick cooking spray
- 1/4 cup Chopped parsley for garnish
Servings: servings (5 meatballs)
Units:
Instructions
Meaballs
- Clean area and preheat oven at 425 degrees.
- Line two baking sheets with foil and set them aside.
- Place all the ingredients for the meatballs in a large mixing bowl. Gently mix with your hands until well combined. Do not overmix.
- Use a small scooper to portion out meatballs to ensure they are all the same size and cook evenly. Place on foil-lined baking sheet.
- Bake meatballs in over for 10-14 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.
Meatballs & Sauce
- Once the meatballs have been cooked, lightly spray your slow cooker with a non-stick cooking spray and add meatballs.
- Top the meatballs with the remaining ingredients listed for the orange cranberry sauce and stir to coat the meatballs well.
- Cover and cook on high for 2 hours. Turn heat to low until ready to serve.
- Note: Cooked meatballs can be stored in the refrigerator for 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
Recipe Notes
Ingredients in Cranberry Orange Meatballs may include added sugars. 1 serving of Cranberry Orange Meatballs contains:
Total Sugars – 12.8 grams
Added sugars 4.8 grams