Why We Love Apple Butter Meatballs
Swedish meatballs are one of my absolute favorite comfort meals. The cozy spices and savory meat would be perfectly balanced with a little hint of apple, so I created these Spiced Apple Swedish Meatballs! They are perfectly easy to make and can be served as a meal or an appetizer. For ease, I like to make a bunch of them by baking them in the oven, but they can be browned in a pan too! These Swedish cocktail meatballs are sure to be a serious hit! Meatballs were all-the-rage just a couple of generations ago. Then it seems like every Swedish Meatballs Recipe dropped off the face of the planet, never to be seen again. Well, I find that completely unacceptable. We need to bring them back, and fast! I recently ate some barbeque sauce made with Musselman’s Apple Butter and fell in love. It got me thinking about all the savory dishes that could benefit from a healthy dose of apple butter. After some experimentation, I’m starting to believe that anytime you add “spiced apple” flavor to a dish, you’ve improved the original. Like this Homemade meatball recipe, for instance. These Spiced Apple Butter Meatballs have become a new family favorite. They are ultra tender and savory-sweet, with an unexpected pop of spiced apple flavor from the apple butter. And best of all, they are Gluten Free! My kids devoured them one night at dinner, then asked for the leftovers at breakfast. I wouldn’t allow them to eat cocktail meatballs for breakfast, so they asked to take them to school in their lunch boxes. They finally finished off all the meatballs, as an after-school snack that same day.
Homemade Meatballs with Apple Glaze
I’ve never seen anyone so ravenous for a Baked Meatballs Recipe. It had to be the apple butter. Musselman’s apple butter is slow-cooked to caramelize the natural fruit sugars and develop an intense apple flavor. It’s America’s favorite apple butter brand because it’s exceedingly rich and smooth. To top it all, it’s dairy free, gluten free, fat free, sodium free, cholesterol free, and preservative free. We’ve polished off several jars of Musselman’s Apple Butter in the last few weeks making spiced apple cocktail meatballs, apple butter stuffed mushrooms, apple butter BBQ sauce, and of course, eating it on toast. It really does give savory dishes that little “spiced apple” extra something. Apple butter just might be my new go-to secret ingredient. Thank goodness we’ve brought Cocktail Meatballs back with this Spiced Apple Butter Meatballs Recipe. …Now if only I could get my hands on that beehive wig!
Tips & Tricks
Don’t over-mix the meat mixture! You want to mix it up until combined, but do not over-mix. This can cause tough meatballs! If serving at a potluck or get-together, you can place the cooked meatballs in a small crockpot on low to keep them warm! I used a combination of ground sausage and beef for super savory meatballs, but you can use ground turkey or chicken if you prefer for a healthier version!
Other Spiced Apple Favorites:
Apple Celery Root Gratin Apple Cheddar Palmiers Apple Yeast Bread Spicy Apple Butter BBQ Sauce ~ Musselman’s Savory Apple Pizza ~ TheKitchn Roasted Squash Soup with Apple Butter and Bacon ~ A Baking Life Easy Apple Upside-Down Cake with Whiskey Sauce Crunchy Apple Slaw Apple Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Musselman’s Apple Butter. All apple-licious opinions are my own. Share This Recipe With Friends!
