The other night, The Husband asked, “What’s for dinner?” “Soup” was my response. His? “That’s it?” Well, yes. Besides the fact that I can very easily make a complete meal out of a good soup, we had a fridge full of leftovers that I just couldn’t bring myself to add to. Of course, knowing how much he loves leftovers (not!) and being the good wife that I am, I made something else in addition to the soup… Buffalo Chicken Meatballs.
Rachael Ray made this one on her talk show earlier in the week and it certainly was simple enough to make. Since the meatballs are baked and are ground chicken, it’s pretty darn healthy too. I usually bypass buffalo wings and the like and things made with lots of hot sauce, but I couldn’t resist trying one of these before I dished it up. Four later, I had to back away from the meatballs. The Husband never dips his buffalo chicken in the bleu cheese dipping sauce that ordinarily accompanies it, but since I love bleu cheese sauce, of course I did. Very good stuff, and perfect for the upcoming tailgating season. Enjoy!
Buffalo Chicken Meatballs
Recipe courtesy of Rachael Ray
1 pound ground white meat chicken
1/2 small onion, grated
2 cloves garlic, grated
1/2 cup parsley, chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), for drizzling
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup hot sauce (such as Frank’s)
3 scallions, green and white parts thinly sliced
Store-bought, good quality bleu cheese dressing for dipping
A couple of handfuls celery sticks
A couple of handfuls carrot sticks
Yields: 4 snack-size servings
Preheat oven to 400F. In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground chicken with the onion, garlic and parsley, and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Flatten out the meat in the bowl and score it into four portions using the side of your hand. Shape each portion into four balls – you should have sixteen meatballs in total.
Arrange the meatballs on a nonstick sheet pan and drizzle them with EVOO. Place in the oven and bake until the meatballs are cooked through and golden brown, about 10-12 minutes.
While the meatballs are baking, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the hot sauce and whisk to combine. Toss the baked meatballs in the hot sauce to coat.
Transfer the meatballs to a serving platter and spike each one with a toothpick or serving fork. Place the bleu cheese dressing in a small serving bowl and garnish with scallions. Serve the meatballs with the bleu cheese dressing, celery and carrot sticks alongside.
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
I am salivating already. And I have just eaten my dinner! I must bookmark this to try next week.
I was home with a sick child last week and saw these on her show – glad to know they are worth trying.
Forgot to add – that her Buffalo Chicken Chili is pretty awesome too. My family who doesn’t like to try anything new devoured this.
I didn’t see this episode, but on Monday, I was looking at the website and saw this recipe. I bought the ingredients, and was planning on making them tonight!!
Those sound really fun! Every year for the Super Bowl I make something buffalo wing related. Sometimes it’s the wings straight up, but more recently it’s been a dip. This sounds like a really fun twist-I’ll be trying it out soon for sure.
would love the dip recipe Erika W.
the neighbor husband
Here ya go neighbor husband. It’s not the prettiest dip to serve- you’ll see that if you make it, but it’s omg good, and seriously addictive. We like it with baked tortilla chips best.
Buffalo Chicken Wing Dip
1 1/2 lbs chicken breasts — cooked and shredded
1 bottle hot sauce (use whole bottle or just half — (12 ounce) if desired)
2 packages cream cheese — (8 ounce) softened
1 bottle bleu cheese salad dressing (or can use ranch or 8 oz blue cheese and ranch) — (16 ounce total)
2/3 cup chopped celery
3 cups shredded cheddar cheese or monterey jack and cheddar cheese blend
Preaheat oven top 350. In a large bowl, mix shredded chicken, celery and cheese. In a saucepan over med-low heat, combine cream cheese and salad dressing and stir until smooth. Stir in bottle of hot sauce ( don’t have to use entire bottle if you want it milder). Pour heated mixture into bowl with chicken mixture. Stir to mix well. Pour into a 13″ x 9″ baking pan. Bake uncovered for 40 minutes or until bubbly—-make sure top doesn’t get browned. Let stand for 10 minutes. Serve warm OR cold—–tastes best warm— with celery or other veggies and crackers.
This sounds beyond simple and delicious! Yet another recipe to bookmark and try later. :)