Eggplant (Aubergine) Meatballs

“You would never be able to tell these werent made with beef if they were in a pot of spaghetti sauce.They were really good, I had mine on the side with a little sauce.I used fresh bread crumbs, ran out and threw in about 8 crushed crackers to top up.I rolled them when they were really moist but could form a ball and they were nice and moist after cooking too.”

“First, I must say that I never met a eggplant that I didn’t fall in love with at first taste! I have made this recipe twice now and the first time(completely following recipe) it was good but not worth making again. This surprised me as the other reviews are rather glowing. Since I have made this writers other eggplant recipes, I remade this recipe two days later with some tweaking…1.I used freshly grated cheese. 2. I finely minced fresh onion and garlic. 3. I increased the italian herbs another 1/2tsp and did not add any salt. So you see, I really didn’t change the recipe, just enhanced it. I also had to cut down the baking time. The second time around was a charm!UPDATE: 02/01/10—-made these again today, for the 100th time (well, maybe not that much) but this time I left out the cheese. Did this to cut the sodium and cholesterol down. Di not even miss it! They were just as good as before and better for me.”

“These were AWESOME!! I used the food processor for the eggplant after sauteing, as several people mentioned. Very, very good, and I have tried my share of non-meat meatballs. They would be good enough to patent if they were a little more dry and not quite so fragile. Next time I will try a lower oven temp and longer cooking time, and maybe fresh garlic and onion. Amazing flavor as it though!”

“These were delicious! I baked them for 35 minutes and then simmered in spaghetti sauce for another 20 minutes. Came out perfect!”

“These were yummy! Better then other eggplant balls I’ve tried with cheese in them. My Fiance hates eggplant. When I picked it up at the store he made “the face” and was all “you know I won’t eat eggplant right”?. So I told him it was just for me. Made these tonight with pasta, didn’t mention what they were made with (he is used to me making all kinds of vegetarian meatballs) He went back for seconds! I had to hold back a laugh. I used 2 smaller eggplant, nutritional yeast in place of parmesan and a vegan egg sub of 1 heaping tbsp bean flour 1 tbsp water per egg – worked like a charm. Baked for 40 minutes and then tossed in my sauce for another 20. With my subs it was more of a 4, but as written I’m sure it’s a 5. Thanks! I’ll use this one again!”

“This was really good.It was easy too if you use the food processor.I used this as a finger food for my infant who enjoyed it very much!DH and I enjoyed it as well!So, 5 stars for easy, healthy, and something the whole family liked!!Thanks s’kat”

“INCREDIBLE!Our family is always looking for ways to incorporate healthy, meat-free options into our menu plans and these “meat” balls were SO good!I doubled the recipe for our family of 5 to allow for leftovers and now wish I had made two double batches!I used fresh onion and garlic that I diced and added with the sweated eggplant (which I also diced before cooking).After cooking the eggplant, garlic, & onion mixture until soft, I used a food processor to cut it into finer pieces along with the bread crumbs.I used Panko bread crumbs as I had them on hand.This will be a regular in our rotation!Can’t wait to try these as the meatballs on a meatball sub!Thank you so much s’kat!”

“A nice vegetarian substitute for traditional meatballs – the taste is right on.I’ll be making these again to stock the freezer. Like others, I used minced garlic and onion, instead of powders, and mixed basil, oregano etc. for the spices. I cut back on the water for sauteing and covered the pan to retain the moisture already in the eggplant. The mixture was still moist enough that I used only one egg (or I would have needed ALOT of bread crumbs to even it out).”

“This is a really delicious recipe. I changed the cooking process lightly to cut down on cooking time.I chopped eggplant into smallcubes along with 1 small onion and some garlic and sauteed everything together until the eggplant was soft. Then I mashed it in a bowl and mixed with the remaining ingredients. I also used 1 egg, which seemed perfectly sufficient. I made them into patties instead of meatballs, which cut down on the cooking time in the oven as well.I will definitely make this again. Thanks!”

“These were a hit with both meat-eating kids and vegetarian adults! I also used fresh onion, garlic, herbs andparmesan; plus about a handful of minced almonds and walnuts. the nuts gave them a chewier texture like meat that we all liked. A great idea, thanks for sharing!”

“I used wheat germ instead of breadcrumbs to up the protein content, but other than that pretty much followed the recipe.Delicious and easy!I just set on top of some noodles and covered with sauce.”

“The “meat” balls were excellent.My children each ate seconds.Next time I will reduce the baking time or temperature because they were extra crunchy.Also, next time I will saute a little fresh onion and garlic with the eggplant and omit the powdered seasoning.This is a winner!”

“I love and make this recipe so much till my friends are requesting for the recipe as well.The only ingredients that I added were some fresh thyme ( oh my goodness that made it smell and taste marvelous), then I grater up a small amount ofonions, garlic and sweetpepperand honey that meatballs was the best tasting thing since slice bread…love love love this recipe!!!”

“Made these for dinner tonight and dh and I really liked them.Unfortunately, I added too much parmesan and salt so they turned out pretty salty.I found these were really easy to make using the food processor and a disher to scoop the balls onto my baking sheet.I only used one egg and next time I’ll saute the eggplant with just a little olive oil spray and no water to help cut down on the moisture.”

“The only thing I would do differently is squeeze additional water out of the aubergine after I chopped it. Aside from that, works wonderfully! Even the non-vegetarian friends seemed to like it. Many thanks…”

“I thought these were GREAT! TRUE!DEFINATELY make again too!Think all depends on size of Aubergine,And how moist the mixture is seen!Agrre thought was like stuffing balls, true!I also sprayed then when I put in and turned too!So thank you for sharing this great recipe!”

“Wonderful stuff. Followed recipe except not having any onion powder I added real onion and processed fine. Did need a little more bread crumbs but I think that would depend on the size of the egg plant. Baked them in the morning and let them cool. Just before dinner I added the meat balls to marinara sauce and served on hoagie rolls with a topping of mozzarella cheese. DH could not get enough of them. I will be making this again. Thanks for sharing.”

“I found this delicious! would hardly differentiate this from ground meat. Mine came crunchy on the outside and soft in the inside.To save time, while I was sweating the eggplants, I mixed the other ingredients (except the crumbs)in a bowl. After I sauted the eggplants, I placed them all in a food processor with the eggplants going in first. I added more breadcrumbs to make it firm a bit while I was processing btw.I guess others found it tedious to make it, but it wasn’t for me since I used a long electric plate so I could fry them all at once and a food processor to mix them all together fast.Thanks for this wonderful recipe s’kat. It sure is a cheaper and healthier substitute to meat. Btw, I ate it as is. A good finger food as well.”

“YUM YUM!And it was very easy to make!My 1 1/2 year old absolutely loved them (spaghetti & meatballs is her favorite food)!i wasn’t sure if I should peel the eggplant, so I didn’t.And the texture of them with the skin left on was just right!”

“These were tasty.They tasted exactly like eggplant parmesan, which if you look at the ingredients is eggplant parmesan in a different form.I followed the recipe exactly, and then simmered them in sauce,however they were breaking apart in the sauce after just 10 minutes.Next time I won’t simmer them in sauce, just pour the sauce over right before serving.I also, made a double batch to freeze.”