I love football season! This year I joined a fantasy league and let me tell you, it has brought so much joy to my life! And when I think about football, I think about food! Especially wings! You can find my baked wings-two ways here. I came up with an even healthier version to get my “buffalo fix” on…meatballs! Please make these next time you watch football! Go Broncos! 🙂

 -Tammy

Health tips:  kidney-friendly, diabetes friendly

Ingredients (makes about 16 meatballs)

For the Meatballs:

• 1 lb. ground chicken breast
• 1/2 tsp salt (omit if you have kidney disease)
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/4 c. panko bread crumbs (use whole wheat if you can find them)
• 1 egg white
• 1/4 c. carrots, finely chopped
• 1/4 c. celery, finely chopped
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 c. plus 1 TBS Frank’s Hot Sauce
• 1/3-1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese or Gorgonzola crumbles
• 1 TBS butter
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced (optional)
• Ranch or Blue Cheese dressing for dipping

• olive oil spray

Steps:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a bowl, mix the chicken, salt, pepper, panko, egg, carrots, celery, Worcestershire, 1 TBS Franks, and Gorgonzola. Divide mixture into 16 balls. Lay on a parchment paper covered cookie sheet and spray with a little olive oil spray.
3. Bake for 15-20 minutes (or until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees).
4. In a large bowl, melt 1 TBS of butter in the microwave for a few seconds. Mix in the 1/4 cup Franks. When meatballs come out of the oven, gently toss the meatballs in the sauce.
5. Serve with a side of Ranch or Blue Cheese dressing….and probably a cold beer or Michelada. 🙂