This recipe was an accident. I usually make meatballs from the Betty Crocker cookbook. This time I made a few minor tweaks (the addition of some spices and herbs) and then made a rather nice blunder. I left out the egg. The whole family liked these better than the meatballs with eggs.
- 1lb ground beef
- 1/2 cup dry whole grain bread crumbs (I use my leftover bread)
- 1/4 cup of milk
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon allspice
- 1 teaspoon rubbed sage
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Mix it all up and roll into 1 inch diameter balls. Put in glass baking dishes spaced about half an inch apart and bake at 400 for 20-25 minutes.
UPDATE (4/18/2007): I tried a variation on this last night. I swapped out the sage for 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg and 1/2 teaspoon ginger (ala a Swedish meatball recipe I was looking at). I liked these better.
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Enough with the teasing. What’s the taste and texture difference w/o the eggs?
They’re a bit less tender and more springy and dense. They don’t crumble as easily either. They’re actually closer to a commercial meatball (which my kids have been asking for ever since I stopped buying them and started making my own).
As for taste difference, I can’t say too much since I changed the seasonings from what I’ve used before.