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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
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?
More Apps from the blog to try
- Kung Pao Cauliflower Make it!
- Spicy Crispy Cauliflower with celery ranch.
- Vegan Cheese balls
- Dips for Gameday.
Balls ready to be baked.
Baked below. Serve with marinara or spicy tomato chutney or over spaghetti as veggie balls, or make a veggie ball sub.
Vegan Broccoli Balls
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
- 1/4 cup my almond milk pepper jack, or other vegan cheese shreds like daiya cheddar or pepperjack optional
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
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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.
Broccoli and beets are the ones I have a hard time with. I will eat broccoli, but like you, I don’t look forward to it! These balls might be the answer! As for beets, I’ve gotten to the point where I can put half of one in a smoothie… which is great because not only are they so good for you, they make the smoothie a gorgeous color! Thanks for this recipe — looking forward to trying it!
I agree about the color. Beets in smoothies or cakes are so pretty.
this is one of the healthy recipe, im fortune to see it. thank you for sharing
These sound and look delish! All my family love broccoli, I’ll have to make these for them.
Thanks!
Avez vous un livre en français?
No I don’t have a book in french. You can translate the recipes on the page in French. Look for “translate” button on the right side of the page.
Sorry, broccoli lover here, like everything else, eat it very fresh in season, yummy. My son’s favourite food as a toddler, now that I find a bit odd!
I never could eat raw celery, although I find it essential in most tomato sauce dishes and use it regularly in vegetable stews, I think cooked is a completely different vegetable!
A couple of years ago I decided I really should have a go, not least as an example to my children, so I made salads with (very small) chopped celery and carrot with a simple lemon juice and herb dressing. This I now eat on a regular basis and I am getting used to the flavour so I can tolerate it in other things, although I still wouldn’t say it is a favourite.
🙂 I have a friend who hates celery in every way. a texture or taste issue. I think its ok to omit raw celery if you are getting your daily dose of broccoli 🙂
My stomach literally growled at the recipe (I’m pretty sure that’s not the first time that’s happened to me while reading your blog!) I have to admit, I was a child oddity in that I always loved my vegetables, especially broccoli! I used to pretend I was a brontosaurus eating a tree, haha. One thing I can not get passed though, is grapefruit. I have tried SO HARD to like grapefruit…the last time I had it I juiced it with some other stuff, and I made myself so nauseous that I decided I’m done trying to like it. My body obviously doesn’t need or want it! I agree with some of the previous comments that roasting broccoli great (especially with lemon juice/zest). My other favorite method is pureeing it in soups.
😀 thats a great idea to use. brontosaurus has got to eat those trees 🙂 . Yes, leave that grapefruit alone. I will try roasting some broccoli.
I am afraid beets make me cringe in this way! The only way I can sneak a little beet into my diet is by juicing (masticating) a small piece with other yummy fruits and veggies, so as to completely mask the flavor! I also enjoy doing this with broccoli!
Beets can be an acquired taste as well. juices and smoothies should work for pretty much all veggies in small quantities.
I love beets in a soup with coconut milk. Just roast onions, ginger and garlic, add peeled and cubed beet. Then add coconut milk and water and boil until tender. Then blend until smooth, add salt, pepper and serve with cilantro! The coconut covers the disgusting taste of earth.
Richa, My first vegetable hurdle occurred when I was about 17. I had always hated mushrooms. I visited a great aunt, and she fixed a special meal in my honor. This special meal included, of all things, mushrooms. I did not want to act ungrateful and pretended to like them. As I was eating them, I realized they weren’t as bad as I had believed them to be. After that, I would have them from time to time, and I now love, LOVE, mushrooms. I have told this story to my adult children, but it has not swayed them–they are both mushroom haters. Oh well, their loss. My second vegetable hurdle was brussel sprouts–those bitter little balls. Roasting them changes their flavor profile completely, and I find them delicious that way. Have you tried roasted broccoli? That, too, is delicious. Thank you for the broccoli balls recipe. I will give it a try.
Hi Joyce, yes i hear you about mushrooms. I did not like mushrooms as well. Now I like the freshest mushrooms and certain types in gravies, soups and such. I tried to find out what I dislike about them and hence use them in ways where that feature is hidden 🙂 . I’ll try roasted broccoli next.
I don’t know if I have any vegetables that I dislike. My problem that I seem to be dealing with is texture. I can’t do the texture of the gooey part of the tomatoes- as in if I would eat them raw..on there on. However, would mushroom count? They are a fungus, not a veggie. Hate everything about them.
Yes texture, okra is the same thing for me. that texture.
But mushrooms are gross :P. They smell bad, taste bad, and the texture. Blurgh
lol. 🙂 yeah i find the smell bad and texture weird. But I have started to like the really fresh button/cremini mushrooms in mushroom gravy with loads of fresh herbs like thyme and rosemary and my mushroom chickpea soup.
I cant find a love for broccoli either other than in a stir fry so I have been steaming broccoli slaw and serving pasta, chili etc over it as a pasta substitute.
nice. I don’t much like steamed whole broccoli, but spiralized/slaw might work.
Try broccoli chips a little oil ,put n the toaster oven or regular it taste . Like potato chips I feed some to my 11yr old grand and she said the same granny it taste like chips and now she wants broccoli when ever she visit lol