Have you heard about The Sassy Coconut? Ella Williams is the genius behind St Andrews’ first ever plant-based dessert company. This month we are highlighting one of Ella’s recipes. No, not her raw ‘Nutella’ tart. (It’s AMAZING!) Instead of something sweet, we’ve chosen one of her savory recipes to keep us warm: quinoa meatballs.

Quinoa Meatballs

Ella’s quinoa meatballs are a hearty alternative, packed with lean protein to satisfy a ravenous appetite and repair muscles after a workout.

Ella suggests making these on a weekend when you’ve got a little time to spare. We’ve doubled the recipe found on her blog so it feeds four instead of two. Feel free to double or triple it too – these meatballs freeze beautifully.

Ingredients: 

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 teaspoons dried mixed herbs
• 2 teaspoons chili flakes
• 1 cup sunflower seeds
• 1 chopped onion
• 600g chopped mushrooms
• 800g cooked lentils (tinned is easiest!)
• 1 cup cooked quinoa
• 2 tbsp spelt flour (any flour is suitable)
• salt and pepper to taste

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
• Add the oil to a large frying pan. Cook the onions and mushrooms for around 5 minutes until soft.
• Add the herbs and chili flakes. Cook for another minute.
• Whilst the onions and mushrooms are cooking, pulse the sunflower seeds in a food processor until coarsely chopped. Add the onion and mushroom mixture and pulse until combined.
• In a large bowl, combine the contents of the food processor with the lentils, quinoa and flour and stir until the mixture forms a dough.
• Shape into meatballs and place on a baking try lined with grease-proof paper.
• Cook in the oven for around 30 minutes, turning the meatballs halfway through cooking, until brown and crispy on the outside.

Ella suggests serving these on a bed of courgetti, courgette noodles made with spiralizer. You can also use a normal veggie peeler to make courgette strips, or opt for pre-spiralized courgette from the supermarket. “I like to sauté the courgetti for a couple of minutes with some olive oil until it’s warm but not soggy,” she suggests.

Cover them in a blanket of organic tomato sauce and tuck in. Let us know how you like them.

Keep up with The Sassy Coconut. Her creations are healthy spins on decadent sweets. The best part? All vegan and all delicious. (Several offerings are also gluten free.) And if you’d like to get info on Ella’s upcoming appearances in St Andrews, head over to her Facebook page.  Thanks, Ella!