Savannah's Favorite Meatballs

Savannah used to be my really picky eater and I have been holding out hope for years that by forcing her to taste new things and making her eat school lunch (hey, I know it isn't great, but she can't have a PB&J every single day of her school life) she would start to outgrow it.  It has been quite a battle, let me tell you...and many times I thought it wasn't worth it to force the issue...but I persisted.  It has started to pay off!  She has gone from being the pickiest to being the most open minded about trying things, and she has found out she likes a lot of them (Dylan, on the other hand, has always been the easiest to feed--he asks "do I like this, mom?" and I say "yes" and he says "okay"... even if he hates it or hasn't tried it I always say yes...seems to work)  So in honor of Savannah and her new open minded attitude, here's one of her favorites...

PORCUPINE MEATBALLS

I like to make this with a mixture of meat because I happen to like ground turkey a lot, but when made with only the turkey they are more likely to burn.  The ground beef adds just a little bit of fat to help them not burn while they are browning and not stick to the pan.  If you don't have ground turkey, or don't like ground turkey, you can use two pounds of ground beef and they will be great. 

 

1 lb. ground beef 

1 lb. ground turkey breast

2 eggs

1 tsp. sage

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. white pepper

1/2 cup uncooked rice

2 cans tomato soup

1 can water

3 Tbsp. sugar

Mix together the meats, eggs, seasonings, and rice (not the sugar).  Preheat a large skillet over medium heat.  If you are not using a non-stick pan, spray it with a light coat of cooking spray (a very light coat).  Roll meat mixture into balls about the size of a golf ball (I use a large cookie scoop--it's the perfect size and then they are uniform).  

Place the meatballs in the skillet and cook, turning, to brown on all sides.  Get them good and brown--they will hold together better.

Add tomato soup, water and sugar.  Cover; simmer for one hour on low.  My family is really big on the sauce, so I add two extra cans of soup and another half can of water (but no more sugar).  The sauce is really good on mashed potatoes with melted cheese (Savannah would just die if there were no mashed potatoes!)  It also goes great with a salad and rice.  I haven't tried it with pasta, but that would probably be good too (although it doesn't taste like a marinara sauce in any way.)  Enjoy!