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Vegan Broccoli Balls. Broccoli Cheese Balls, veggie / meat balls. Serve with marinara, or over spaghetti or in a sub. Easy Vegan Recipe. Can be gluten-free. Makes 10 to 12 1 – 1.5 inch balls  Jump to Recipe   

Vegan Broccoli Balls. Broccoli Cheese Balls, veggie / meat balls. Serve with marinara, or over spaghetti or in a sub.| VeganRicha.com #vegan #recipe

I have been trying to incorporate more broccoli in my meals. Yes, yes, I have to admit that it isn’t a vegetable that makes me go yay. I mean I eat it, but am not excited about it as I am with Cauliflower. That is about to change this year with my challenge to make dishes with said nose wrinkling vegetable, that I will like to eat. Lets see how Okra fares this year. 

These balls worked out well to get me to somewhat actually like eating broccoli. Broccoli is roasted to dry out the excess moisture, spices, almond meal, breadcrumbs and chia egg or flax egg are mixed in and rolled up into balls to bake until crisp. The spices get stronger as the baked balls sit and I like the stronger spice flavor. Some vegan cheese in the balls also helps the balls in texture and flavor. 

Do you have an unexplained dislike for a certain vegetable or food? How do you get over that dislike?


Vegan Broccoli Balls. Broccoli Cheese Balls, veggie / meat balls. Serve with marinara, or over spaghetti or in a sub.| VeganRicha.com #vegan #recipe

Vegan Broccoli Balls. Broccoli Cheese Balls, veggie / meat balls. Serve with marinara, or over spaghetti or in a sub.| VeganRicha.com vegan recipe

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Balls ready to be baked. 

Vegan Broccoli Balls. Broccoli Cheese Balls, veggie / meat balls. Serve with marinara, or over spaghetti or in a sub.| VeganRicha.com #vegan #recipe

Baked below. Serve with marinara or spicy tomato chutney or over spaghetti as veggie balls, or make a veggie ball sub.

Vegan Broccoli Balls. Broccoli Cheese Balls, veggie / meat balls. Serve with marinara, or over spaghetti or in a sub.| VeganRicha.com #vegan #recipe

Vegan Broccoli Balls

4.95 from 19 votes
By: Vegan Richa
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 25 minutes
Total: 40 minutes
Servings: 12
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: fusion
Vegan Broccoli Balls. Broccoli Cheese Balls, veggie / meat balls. Serve with marinara, or over spaghetti or in a sub. Easy Vegan Recipe. Can be gluten-free. Makes 10 to 12, 1 - 1.5 inch balls
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Ingredients 
 

  • 1 tsp oil
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
  • 1 large head of broccoli, , florets and tender stem (peel off the knobs from the stem and use)
  • 2 tbsp fresh basil leaves, or 1 tsp dried basil
  • 1/2 tsp dried oregano
  • 1/2 tsp garlic
  • 1/2 tsp chipotle pepper
  • 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp 1/3 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp or more nutritional yeast
  • 1/4 cup almond meal
  • 1/4 cup or more bread crumbs
  • 1 chia seed egg, 1 tbsp chia seeds or chia seed meal mixed with 3 tbsp warm water, let sit for 2 minutes to gel

Variations

Instructions 

  • Heat oil in a pan over medium heat. Add onions and cook for 3 to 4 minutes.
  • Pulse the broccoli and basil in a food processor until grated. Add to the pan. (2.5 to 3 cups grated). Add a dash of salt, mix and cook for 3 to 4 minutes to dry out the excess moisture. (If the broccoli is dry, cook for only a minute). Take off heat.
  • Add in the spices, almond meal, breadcrumbs. Mix well. Make the chia seed egg or use 1 flax egg (1 tbsp flax seed meal + 2.5 Tbsp warm water) or egg replacer for 1 egg.
  • Mix in. Add vegan cheese shreds if using. Add more breadcrumbs if needed.
  • Shape the mixture into balls. If the balls are too crumbly (depends on the moisture content, size of grated broccoli etc), add another chia egg, or sprinkle some non dairy milk or aquafaba and mix well.
  • Place on parchment lined baking sheet. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F / 200ºc.
  • Bake for a total of 20 to 25 minutes or until crisp and golden on the outside. (Turn the sheet around after 15 minutes, and continue to bake.). you can also sprinkle some cheese shreds on the balls in the last 5 minutes. Serve warm with marinara or over spaghetti or as veggie balls in a sub sandwich.

Notes

Use other nuts as walnuts or pumpkin/sunflower seeds(nut-free) instead of almonds. Process into meal and use. Or use more breadcrumbs.
For variation: add a 1/2 to 1 cup cooked mashed chickpeas or other beans for a hearty veggie ball.
Nutritional values based on one broccoli ball

Nutrition

Calories: 60kcal, Carbohydrates: 7g, Protein: 2g, Fat: 2g, Sodium: 108mg, Potassium: 190mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 340IU, Vitamin C: 45.8mg, Calcium: 42mg, Iron: 0.7mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Did you make this recipe? Rate and comment below!

Vegan Broccoli Balls. Broccoli Cheese Balls, veggie / meat balls. Serve with marinara, or over spaghetti or in a sub.| VeganRicha.com #vegan #recipe

In other news,

Microbeads have finally been banned. These tiny plastic beads in hundreds of products ranging from body scrubs to toothpastes provide an exfoliating sensation for users and are designed to wash down drains. But because they are made of plastic, microbeads do not dissolve and may pose a threat to the environment. In September, a study published in Environmental Science & Technology reported that more than 8 trillion microbeads were entering the country’s aquatic habitats daily causing many issues for the aquatic animals. The volume was enough to coat the surface of 300 tennis courts every day.

Ringling is retiring elephants from their shows, but wait, the elephants will head to cancer research and breeding facility and not a sanctuary. Lets get these elephants to a true sanctuary where they can live a somewhat natural life after years of abuse.

About Richa

Hi, I'm Richa! I create flavorful plant based recipes that are inspired by my Indian upbringing, including many gluten-free, soy-free, and oil-free options.

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4.95 from 19 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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122 Comments

  1. Mark French says:

    5 stars
    Made it low carb by replacing breadcrumbs with a second chia egg. Also steamed broccoli a bit first then dried it out in the oven as it was preheating. Was absolutely superb over zoodles and NYT recipe marinara sauce. Worked fine in the air fryer, too

  2. Michele says:

    5 stars
    These are just plain delicious! Great, simple recipe. Thanks for sharing!

    1. Vegan Richa Support says:

      awesome!

    2. Stephanie says:

      5 stars
      These are successful! Next time I will reduce the chipotle. The original recipe delivers heat! I used frozen broccoli and pulsed it in the food processor to create a coarse mix after saureeing with the onion. Perfect!!

      1. Vegan Richa Support says:

        awesome! 🙂