Italian Vegan Meatballs (chickpeas)

Delicious meat-free Italian vegan meatballs that are full of protein thanks to chickpeas, fresh spices, gluten-free and dairy-free.

Why You'll Love This

Spicy, soft, delicious. These Italian meatballs are bursting with flavor, tomato-sweet and Italian-spiced and full of protein.

Familiar healthy ingredients. There is no meat in this meatball, and the ingredients are budget-friendly and probably in your kitchen right now. Chickpeas, the primary ingredient, are a great source of folate, a mineral that is not that easy to find in food and which is very important for brain cell support. Each meatball has 4 grams of protein and 3 grams of fiber per meatball!

Beloved by everyone. These are vegan, dairy-free and gluten-free meatballs, but plenty of my non-vegan friends eat them and declare them to be the best meatball they've ever tasted. If you like this comfort meal, you might want to try my vegan quinoa paella and my mushroom portobello steaks.

Ingredients

• Chick peas. Buy canned, unsalted and bpa-free. Drain off the aquafaba and save it in the refrigerator for three days or freezer for dessert recipes such as my bakery blueberry muffins.
• Almond flour. Or use your favorite breadcrumbs.
• Tomato-based products. I used both ketchup and sundried tomatoes in the meatballs.
• Binders. I used 3 flaxseed eggs.These are made by mixing three tablespoons of tablespoons of ground flax seeds into 9 tablespoons for water.
• Flavorings. Onion, garlic, cilantro, nutritional yeast, Italian seasoning, salt and cayenne pepper.

I provide a recipe in the recipe card for homemade marinara sauce, or you can buy your favorite.

Make the Meatballs

Process the chickpeas. Add the chickpeas and flax eggs to a food processor and blended until you have a chunky texture.

Combine the mixture. Add the processed chickpeas and other ingredients into a mixing bowl and combined with a spoon. After mixing, if mixture is too dry, add the additional ketchup. If mixture is too dry, add a touch more flour.

Roll meatballs. Using your hands (gloved or very wet) roll 12-24 meatballs depending on size and set them on the cookie sheet.

Bake them. Bake meatballs uncovered for 20 minutes, turning once halfway through, and bake another 10 minutes so the balls are cooked soft in center but crusty on the outside.

Recipe Tips

1. When rolling the meatballs, note the mixture will be very sticky. Keep your hand very wet or wear a culinary glove.

2. If you want a dryer meatball, bake it longer than 10 minutes. Although it's not meat so you don't have to worry about under-cooking.

3. Eat right away or bury them in your marinara sauce, refrigerate and they will absorb the flavors and be even more flavorful the next day.

Storage

The meatballs can last in the refrigerator for 4 days, cooked or uncooked. The meatballs can be frozen uncooked for three months. To store them cooked, first toss them in a marinara sauce, and freeze them in single-meal batches for three months.

Other Comfort Food Recipes

Italian Vegan Stuffed Mushrooms
Portobello Mushroom Steaks
Vegan Quinoa Paella
Jackfruit BBQ Sandwiches

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Italian Vegan Meatballs (chickpeas)

Created by Dee Dine

Delicious meat-free Italian vegan meatballs that are full of protein thanks to chickpeas, fresh spices, gluten-free and dairy-free.

5 from 3 votes

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Prep Time 20 mins

Cook Time 45 mins

Total Time 1 hr 5 mins

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine Italian, Mediterranean

Servings 12

Calories 58 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

Vegan Meatballs

• 3 flax egg (3 tablespoon ground flax seeds + 9 tablespoon water, wait 15 min)
• ½ cup yellow onion (chopped)
• 1 garlic clove (peeled, crushed)
• 2 cans chick peas (bpa-free, organic) (drained/rinsed but save the liquid in the can in the refrigerator or freezer to use in desserts)
• ½ cup almond flour (or breadcrumbs)
• 2 tablespoon sundried tomatoes chopped
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro chopped
• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
• 1 teaspoon ground Italian seasoning (or oregano and basil)
• pinch salt
• pinch cayenne pepper
• ½ cup ketchup Use a refined-sugar-free brand

Marinara Sauce

• ¼ cup onion (chopped)
• 1 garlic clove (crushed)
• 2 cups tomatoes (cored & chopped or canned whole)
• 1 (4.5oz) tube tomato paste
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro (chopped)
• 1 teaspoon ground Italian seasoning (or oregano and basil)
• 1 bay leaf
• pinch salt and pepper

OR USE

• Store-Bought Marinara Sauce

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Instructions

 

Prep

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Prepare the 3 flax eggs and set aside so they can rest.
• Layer a cookie sheet with parchment.

Make the Meatballs

• Rinse the chickpeas (I used canned), put in a food processor and spin to a chunky texture - add the flax eggs when they are ready and process until the flax is blended through. The chickpea texture is going to be a bit chunky, not smooth.
  2 cans chick peas (bpa-free, organic)
• Add this mixture to a mixing bowl with all other ingredients. (After mixing, if mixture is too dry, add the additional ketchup. If mixture is too dry, add a touch more flour.)
  3 flax egg, ½ cup yellow onion, 1 garlic clove, ½ cup almond flour, 2 tablespoon sundried tomatoes, ¼ cup fresh cilantro, 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast, 1 teaspoon ground Italian seasoning, pinch salt, pinch cayenne pepper, ½ cup ketchup
• Use your hands (gloved or very wet) to knead/mix, and then roll 12-24 meatballs depending on size, setting them on the cookie sheet.
• Bake them uncovered for 20 minutes, turning once halfway through, and bake another 10 minutes so the balls are cooked soft in center but crusty on the outside.

Make the Sauce

• Prepare the ingredients. Chop the onions, and tomatoes. And peel the garlic cloves.
• Then, put a tablespoon or two of olive oil in the bottom of a deep skillet or dutch oven and turn on to medium heat. While the oil is heating, add in the onions and garlic.
  ¼ cup onion, 1 garlic clove
• Next, add the chopped tomatoes and paste, and all the other ingredients including the bay leaf, cover and simmer covered on very low heat for about 30 minutes. Add water if it looks too dry.
  2 cups tomatoes, 1 (4.5oz) tube tomato paste, ¼ cup fresh cilantro, 1 teaspoon ground Italian seasoning, 1 bay leaf, pinch salt and pepper
• After 30 minutes, remove the bay leaf. Add the meatballs to it.

Storage

• The meatballs can last in the refrigerator for 4 days, cooked or uncooked. The meatballs can be frozen uncooked for three months. To store them cooked, first toss them in a marinara sauce, and freeze them in single-meal batches for three months.

Notes

1. When rolling the meatballs, note the mixture will be very sticky. Keep your hand very wet or wear a culinary glove.

2. If you want a dryer meatball, bake it longer than 10 minutes. Although it's not meat so you don't have to worry about under-cooking.

3. Eat right away or bury them in your marinara sauce, refrigerate and they will absorb the flavors and be even more flavorful the next day.

Nutrition

Calories: 58kcalCarbohydrates: 6gProtein: 4gFat: 3gSaturated Fat: 0.3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.2gSodium: 93mgPotassium: 102mgFiber: 3gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 81IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 21mgIron: 0.5mg

Keyword chickpea meatballs, italian meatballs, vegan meatballs

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