Basil Lime Chicken Meatballs With Sun-Dried Tomato Polenta
These chicken meatballs are homemade and infused with freshly chopped basil, lime juice, and lime zest. Accompanied by a creamy bowl of sun-dried tomato polenta and a side salad. (Jump to Recipe)
I guess this is what using the best of summer’s harvest looks like. All kinds of food infused with basil and tomatoes. I’m not complaining.
I’ve waited months to start growing and collecting produce from my own garden, that I can easily incorporate into my cooking. And we have arrived.
Here, we have a TON of freshly chopped basil from my garden, along with lime juice and lime zest that is folded into ground chicken and a few other kitchen staples. The aftermath is juicy, herby, zesty meatballs that are so tender.
I imagine that when you think of chicken meatballs, you think of mashed potatoes. Same. Thereupon, I thought let’s switch things up and use something that’s creamy but, also, a little different. Polenta it was.
I use this pre-cooked and ready-to-heat sun-dried tomato and garlic polenta from Ancient Harvest. It’s already infused with sun-dried tomatoes and garlic for flavor and it’s super easy to heat up which is a huge plus when you’re already making meatballs from scratch. I broke it up and put it in a saucepan. Placed the heat on medium/low and added a bit of milk. Stirred and added a bit more milk. Removed it from the heat and added shredded Parmesan cheese as an extra bonus.
We are talking fresh green basil, squeezes of vibrant lime, and intense sweet and tart sun dried tomato flavors here. Cheers to all that summer has to offer!
I’ve served this with a side salad made of tomatoes, cucumber, avocado, chives, olive oil, and vinegar.
If you love this summer time recipe, I bet you’ll love these too:
Southwest Chipotle Chopped Salad
Sheet Pan Flank Steak with Brussels Sprouts and Sweet Potatoes
Greek Chicken Gyros With Tzatziki
This post and recipe is sponsored by Ancient Harvest. As always, all opinions are my own.
Basil Lime Chicken Meatballs With Sun-Dried Tomato Polenta
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 3/4 cup fresh basil, chopped (plus additional for garnish, optional)
- 2 limes, zested and juiced
- 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp mustard
- 2 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 18 oz package of Ancient Harvest pre-cooked sun-dried tomato and garlic polenta
- 1 cup milk, divided
- 1/4 cup Parmesan, grated
For The Tomato, Cucumber, And Avocado Salad
- 1 (10 oz) package grape tomatoes, cut lengthwise
- 1 cucumber, skin removed, quartered and thinly sliced
- 1 avocado, cubed
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 1/2 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp fresh chives, chopped
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Combine ground chicken, basil, lime zest and juice, breadcrumbs, egg, mustard, mayonnaise, paprika, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Stir with a large spoon until well combined.
- Using your hands, shape the ground chicken mixture into 12 meatballs and arrange on the prepared baking sheet so that they do not touch. Place into the oven and bake for 22-25 minutes, or until meatballs are fully cooked through.
- In a medium bowl, toss together tomato cucumber avocado salad ingredients until well combined, set aside.
- Heat a medium size saucepan over medium/low heat. Add polenta and 1/4 cup milk to the saucepan. Gently break apart with a large wooden spoon or fork as it heats up. Add additional milk in 1/4 cup increments. Cook for 7-9 minutes until creamy. Remove from heat. Stir in Parmesan.
- Serve meatballs with creamy polenta, fresh sliced basil, and tomato cucumber avocado salad.
