Herby Parmesan Meatballs + 3 recipes to use them in

episode 2 of meal prep for food snobs!

Hi! Welcome to “good mood food” from Kale Me Maybe’s Carina Wolff. If you’ve made it here and aren’t yet a subscriber, come join! You can expect recipes, musings, and faves in your inbox every week! Paid subscribers get even more on Saturdays — right now I’m doing a 30-minute budget meal series! Learn more about the paid tier of my newsletter here. You can also try a week for free!

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The other day I was listening to a podcast, and the guest, a neuroscientist, was discussing attachment theory. As he was referencing some of the classic experiments, I was immediately taken back to my days at NYU. In addition to journalism, I also majored in psychology, although I never did anything with the degree. Listening to the podcast made me nostalgic, and I had this yearning pang to go back to school.

I’ve always wanted to get a masters degree of some sort, whether it be in philosophy or creative writing or psychology again. I miss listening to lectures, diving deep into subjects, and even writing papers.

Before Grant and I had a baby, he would always talk about how he wishes he could live one life without kids and one with, just to get to experience both. I feel the same about careers. There are so many avenues I’d like to explore in life: pursuing higher education, writing novels, becoming a therapist.

I’ve always felt lucky that I’ve had so many interests. I never had to worry about what major to choose or what to do with my free time. But in the same way I wish I had more hours in the day to do all the things I enjoy, I wish I had multiple lives to live. Part of me thinks, “There’s always the future,” but I know how unpredictable the future can be. But still, I can dream.

THINGS I’M LOVING

I love these cookies from Bakr — they come frozen, and you just pop them in the oven, and they are SO delicious. I like how they’re kind of small, so sometimes I’ll make two different flavors at the same time. The other day I ate them fresh out of the oven with vanilla ice cream, and it was the perfect after-dinner treat. My favorite is the brown butter chocolate chip, but the fudge brownie is also really good.

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RECIPE!

Welcome back to my series, Meal Prep for Food Snobs!

As a refresher, this series is for people who don’t like to end the same thing every day but still want the ease and convenience of meal prep. Each week, I’ll give you one recipe that can be prepared at the beginning of the week and enjoyed in multiple ways.

This week, we have Herby Parmesan meatballs. I made a big batch (2 pounds of meat), so it can feed two people over the course of 3-4 meals. If you’re only cooking for one or don’t want to eat meatballs multiple times during the week, this also gives you the option to freeze.

I’m giving you three recipes to make with these meatballs. The first is a pearl couscous and hot honey halloumi salad topped with meatballs. The second is meatballs with vodka sauce with buttered garlic parsley bread. The third is a pesto soup.

I love these combinations because you can use the pearl couscous in two recipes, and you could even add the pesto to the pearl couscous salad if you want to utilize it twice! I made 2 cups of pearl couscous at the beginning of the week to use in both recipes.

Meatballs (makes about 36 meatballs)

Ingredients

• 2 lb 80/20 ground beef

• 1 cup grated Parmesan

• 1 small yellow onion, grated

• 6 cloves finely chopped (or crushed) garlic

• 1/2 cup breadcrumbs

• 2 large eggs

• 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley

• 2 tsp finely chopped fresh rosemary

• 1 tsp oregano

• 1/2 tsp Aleppo pepper (can sub crushed red pepper)

• 2 tsp salt

1. Preheat oven to 400 F, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl, combine ground beef, Parmesan, onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, eggs, parsley, rosemary, oregano, Aleppo pepper, and salt. Mix ingredients together until just combined, taking care not to over-mix.

2. Using a cookie scoop, portion out your meatballs and add them to the baking sheet. I scoop a heaping portion with the cookie scoop, and then roll them out with my hands. You should have about 36 meatballs (they will be on the smaller side).

3. Transfer to the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until meatballs reach an internal temperature of at least 165 F.

Pearl Couscous Halloumi Bowl (serves 2)

For this recipe, you can reheat meatballs in the microwave (50% power works well). You can also reheat them in the oven at 300 F. Cover with foil and bake for about 15 minutes.

I would also consider adding some chopped tomatoes and cucumbers to the salad! I didn’t have any at home, but next time, that’s what I would do!

Bowl

• 1 cup uncooked pearl couscous (about 2 1/2 cups cooked)

• Big handful of arugula

• 1/3 cup pickled onions

• Olive oil

• Juice of 1-2 lemons

• 8-10 meatballs

Hot Honey Halloumi

• 8 oz halloumi, cut into 1/2 inch slices

• Olive oil

• Hot honey

1. Start by preparing your hot honey halloumi. Heat up a drizzle of olive oil in a large skillet on medium heat. Add the halloumi, drizzle with hot honey, and fry for 2-3 minutes on each side until halloumi is golden brown. Watch the second side because it cooks faster!

2. In a medium bowl, combine pearl couscous, arugula, pickled onions, a good drizzle of olive oil, lemon juice, and a pinch of salt. I would start with 1 lemon, taste, and add more if needed!

3. Divide the pearl couscous into two bowls, and top with 4-5 meatballs.

Vodka Meatballs

This recipe can be made in two different ways. You can buy a jar of premade vodka sauce, or you can make a homemade one. I made the Jon and Vinny’s recipe because it’s super easy, but obviously, using a jarred sauce is much more convenience! I love Raos and Sauz, and they both have good vodka sauces.

To make, add the sauce and meatballs to a pan on medium-low heat. Cook until everything is warmed, and cover the pan if you need to speed things along. Serve topped with grated Parmesan and olive oil!

Pesto Soup (serves 2)

I kept this soup really simple — you just combine meatballs with broth and pearl couscous and then mix in pesto and top with Parmesan. You could beef the recipe up (no pun intended!!!!) with some sautéed veggies too! My favorite pesto is from Gotham Greens — I get it at Whole Foods.

Ingredients

• About 2 cups cooked pearl couscous

• 4 cups chicken broth

• 8-10 meatballs

• Pesto

• Parmesan, to top

1. Add meatballs and broth to a medium pot, and bring to a low boil. Mix in the pearl couscous.

2. Serve topped with dollops of pesto and grated Parmesan cheese.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT!

Last week, paid subscribers received a recipe for Lemon Alfredo Cabbage Pasta! Made in 30 minutes and budget friendly, as always! This is the recipe that really solidified my new love for cabbage.

Just a reminder that anytime you become a paid subscriber, you get access to ALL of the past recipes in the archive. You can always do a free 7-day trial as well!