Months and months ago I posted that picture to the right on Instagram.  I promised to post the recipe soon after some more recipe testing and fine tuning.  Not sure what happened, but we didn't eat meatballs again until recently.  To my mind, they are a winter food anyhow, rich and comforting and satisfying and completely out of place any other time of year.  

Early on in the reincarnation of my relationship with Brian ... wait ... what do you mean you are confused by what I mean by reincarnation?  A brief history of my relationship with Brian looks like this:  dated over twenty years ago in college, lost touch for nine years until Brian stalked me on the internet, hooked up right before I moved to Italy for the better part of 2005, moved in together in 2006, married in 2008.  And there you have it.

Back to my story about creating a ritual around meatballs early on in the reincarnation of our relationship.  When Brian and I reunited after many years, it was a long distance relationship.  I would make him meatballs to freeze and have when we were apart.  Once we moved in together, I would make and freeze meatballs for Brian to enjoy when I was away, say because I went home to Colorado or went to visit friends.  

So you see, these are really love balls or balls of love, which I will not be calling them because the internet would have a field day with that title.  

The thing about meatballs is that they need a binder, and the most common one is bread.  That was all well and good in the meatball history of Brian and Molly until April 2013 when it became clear that bread was killing me.  I couldn't just stop making meatballs because one of the important rituals in our relationship depends on them.  What was I to do?

Gaining inspiration from America's Test Kitchen, which advocates using potato flakes as a binder to make recipes gluten free, and drawing upon some recipes I truly enjoy like this one, I have created our favorite gluten free meatball.

Yes, there is bacon in it and cheese, which is why they do not suck, a name Brian created. I never claimed these would please orthorexics.  I did not call them healthy meatballs.  They represent another facet of the way I eat, which is without deprivation or restriction and in moderation. What they do represent is a freedom for people like me who cannot eat gluten for medical reasons.  That freedom is the ability to make a damn delicious meatball without buying a pre-made, factory processed meatball.  Enjoy!

Turkey Bacon Meatballs (Balls of Love!)
Serves 4

1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup whole milk
1/4 cup potato flakes  (I prefer Bob's Red Mill)
1/3 cup fresh Italian parsley, minced
3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
5-10 grinds of fresh black pepper
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 pound ground turkey
​2 slices bacon, diced 

Preheat oven to 400 F.  Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

Stir together all ingredients except for the turkey and the bacon until thoroughly combined.  Add turkey and bacon.  Using your hands, get in there and gently knead until uniformly combined.

Using your hands, roll into roughly 1.5 inch meatballs.  You will have 16-20 meatballs.  Place them on the sheet pan leaving space between them as you would for cookie dough.  An optional step is to brush the meatballs with a little olive oil to aid browning.

Place them in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, until they are lightly browned and cooked through.  If you have a meat thermometer, the desired temperature is 160-165 F.   

Serving ideas:  With spaghetti and tomato sauce.  My favorite gluten free brand of spaghetti is Trader Joe's Organic Brown Rice Spaghetti which has two ingredients, brown rice and water.  You can serve them as cocktail snacks by sticking a toothpick in each one and placing them on a platter.  They are delightful in a meatball sandwich.  

To freeze:  Roll each meatball and place on a plate.  Do not cook.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of one hour .  Place in a freezer safe container and freeze for up to two months.  The benefit of freezing them is that you can defrost only as many as you need.  

​Nutritional awesomeness:  Despite the bacon and the cheese, this recipe does have some nutritional merit.  Let's talk parsley!  Parsley packs a ton of Vitamin A, Vitamin C and iron into its little leaves.  Parsley also is loaded with anti-oxidants and disease fighting materials.  Olive oil is a monounsaturated fatty acid that has been shown to help lower bad cholesterol.  It contains polyphenols which are powerful antioxidants.  Studies in Europe have concluded that olive oil consumption helps lower blood pressure. One Greek study with 36,000 participants concluded that there is an inverse relationship between eating olive oil and rates of cancer.  Ground turkey is an excellent source of protein.  If it is pasture-raised, it also will contain a good ratio of omega-3 fatty acids to omega-6 fatty acids.  Ground turkey is a good source of niacin and vitamin B6.  You can read about the health benefits of vitamin B6 here.  

My love for avocados runs deep.  I usually eat one-half to a whole avocado each day.  I put them on my eggs in the morning, my salad at night, and everything in between.  In 7th grade, I befriended a girl for the simple reason that we both liked to eat avocados with salt on them for an after school snack.  It turns out that was about the only thing we had in common, and eventually our mutual love of avocados could no longer be the tie that bound us together.

I spent the holidays with my in-laws in Texas.  My need for green food at nearly every meal made me the de facto salad chef for the holidays.  I loved it!  I had fun introducing Brian's family to some of my favorite salads.  One night, my brother-in-law, David, made some terrific grilled cilantro shrimp.  I knew not just any salad would do and so I came up with this avocado and grapefruit salad which takes advantage of what is in season and utilized the cilantro found in the shrimp recipe (I hate throwing out fresh herbs).   It's citrus season, and Texas has some refreshing specimens called Sweet Scarletts.  They are not too bitter and are perfect to add to salads.

I have high standards for salads, and this one meets all of them.  It must be delicious with a pleasing ratio of bitter to sweet to sour to salty.  The textures must be a lot of fun, and between the crunch of the nuts the pop of the citrus and smoothness of the avocados, this salad delivers.  It must visually pleasing to the diner as this one is with its pink and green hues.  This salad is one that can be served on a weeknight or for a special occasion - it's that versatile!  Enjoy!

Avocado & Grapefruit Salad with Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette
Serves 4

Spring Mix

2 ripe Hass avocados

1 large Sweet Scarlett grapefruit or other sweet grapefruit variety

4 tablespoons pepitas / pumpkin seeds, roasted and salted

1/4 - 1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

2 - 3 tablespoons honey

1/2 cup olive oil

Pinch of sea salt

Put a large handful (or more!) of spring mix in each of four salad bowls.  

Cut each avocado in half, remove the pit, and scoop out the flesh with a large spoon onto a cutting board.  Slice each avocado half into thin slices, and then place on top of each of the bowls of spring mix.  There should be one sliced avocado half for each bowl of spring mix.

Peel the grapefruit, removing as much of the white, bitter pith as possible.  Slice the grapefruit so that you have large circles and then cut each circle in half.  Place 1/4 of the grapefruit slices on each bowl of spring mix.  

Sprinkle each salad with one tablespoon of pepitas.  

Make the dressing:  Combine the cilantro, lime juice, honey, olive oil and salt in a small bowl.  Whisk to emulsify.  Taste.  If it's too sour or bitter, add a little more honey.  Drizzle 2-3 tablespoons of the dressing over each salad and serve.  

​Nutritional awesomeness:  Avocados are a good source of healthy monounsaturated fat, fiber, potassium and folate.  Avocados contain over 20 vitamins and minerals.  Grapefruit is a very good source of dietary fiber, Vitamin C and Vitamin A.  Vitamin C boosts the immune system.  Pepitas are a good source of Protein, Vitamin K and Iron, and a very good source of Magnesium.  Vitamin K regulates blood clotting and helps transport calcium in the body.  Lime juice is a very good source of Vitamin C and a good source of Potassium. Potassium helps regulate blood pressure, among other benefits.  Olive oil contains MUFAs, a healthy fat that can protect against heart disease.