Sweet Potato Bison Meatballs

We've been trying to eat healthy so we've cut down on red meat, sugar and simple carbs.  When we eat meat, we try to get grass-fed beef, wild-caught fish and free-range chickens. That's why I feel so lucky our Farmers Market sells pasture-raised chickens, grass-fed beef and bison. The only downside is, they don't carry a regular supply and we sometime run out of meat.

Son was longing for beef last week. It was a busy day and I had no time to thaw sirloin. We were also out of grass-fed beef but I found a pack of ground bison meat in the freezer.  I hurriedly made bison meatballs for his lunch box the next day.   That night, he told me that the meatballs were good but they were dry.   I had forgotten that bison meat is leaner and tends to be too dry in burgers or meatballs. I made a mental note to put lots of onions or something to make it moister next time. 

During spring break, we stocked up on sweet potato as Son was working out at the Colvin Center."Sweet potatoes are good carb for workouts," he says. 

Today, Mr. Momgateway had to go to Arkansas for a meeting.  He asked me to pack him some lunch.  Guess what I made?  Sweet Potato Bison Meatballs! Basically, it's my meatball recipe but with diced sweet potatoes for moisture and a little touch of sweetness. Sweet potatoes were steamed first for about 15 minutes (so they were not mushy) then diced into tiny cubes. Here's the recipe.

Sweet Potato Bison Meatballs

1/2 c bison ground meat

1/4 c steamed sweet potato diced into small cubes (add more if you wish)

1/4 c red onions

1/4 t cayenne

1/8 t sea salt (I used Real Salt)

1/4 t pepper

1 T minced green onions

1 T Italian parsley

1/2 c bottled marinara sauce (I used Bertolli's Four Cheese Marinara)

1 t unsalted butter or Ghee (I used ghee from India)

Mix all ingredients above except for the marinara sauce and ghee/ butter.  Form into balls using two spoons. 

Place in a oven-proof glass container.  Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes (depending on your oven).

Add marinara sauce and ghee over the meatballs in the last 5 minutes of baking.