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Get ready for a taste of Thanksgiving anytime! 🦃 These Air Fryer Cranberry Turkey Meatballs are a fun and easy twist on traditional meatballs, packed with the sweet and savory flavors of the holiday season. And the best part? They’re made with nutritious ingredients like protein-rich ground turkey, complex carbohydrate-rich Ezekiel bread, and antioxidant-rich dried cranberries.
Why You’ll Love This Cranberry Turkey Meatball Recipe
- Nutritious Ingredients: Ezekiel bread, a sprouted bread, provides a boost of fiber, protein, and vitamins, making it a great choice for health-conscious cooks. And by using apple juice-sweetened dried cranberries, you can avoid added refined sugar.
- Easy Appetizer: These bite-sized turkey meatballs are perfect for snacking, appetizers, or even as a main dish.
- Air Fryer: With the air fryer, theses easy turkey meatballs are cooked to perfection in just minutes! So go ahead, give them a try, and enjoy the delicious taste and health benefits of these Air Fryer Cranberry Turkey Meatballs.
Try out more of my favorite holiday appetizers like Easy Roasted Butternut Squash Slices with a Honey Drizzle, Bacon Wrapped Brussels Sprouts, or Tangy Dill Pickle Hummus
How To Dry Out the Bread for your Turkey Meatballs
*NOTE: The Ezekiel bread needs to be dried out for a few days on the counter similar to any stuffing bread.
Place it on a sheet pan with a paper towel loosely covered and in a safe clean spot (cold oven works great) It must be hard so you can break into pieces and place it in your food processor and pulse a couple of times to get breadcrumbs.
Alternatively, you can preheat your oven to 350 degrees f.
Place the slices of bread on a sheet pan and bake for 12-15 minutes, until fully toasted and hard.
Allow to completely cool, then process until breadcrumbs.
Or alternatively, toast it really well using a toaster, and break it up finely using your hands.
What is Ezekiel Bread?
🍞 Have you ever had SPROUTED GRAIN BREAD like Ezekiel before?
You’ve probably seen it in the frozen food section at your grocery store because that’s where it’s typically kept.
💡You might have wondered if it was really that different from the “regular” bread on the bakery shelf.
✅ In a word: YES!
Sprouted grain bread is made from grains (seeds) that have begun to germinate or sprout.
This process boosts the bread’s nutrition profile AND makes it easier for your body to digest its nutrients.
The whole grains are usually combined with legumes (beans), which opens the door to a long list of nutrients not found in regular bread.
Plus, the sprouting process breaks down the starches in grains, which means lower carbs and gluten … but MORE fiber and protein.
🧡 They are also higher in vitamins B, C, and E, as well as folate and antioxidants like beta-carotene.
Are you a fan of sprouted grain bread – and if so, what’s your favorite brand?👇
REFERENCES: HealthLine
Ingredients:
These are the nutritious ingredients that come together to make these cranberry turkey meatballs delicious.
6 servings
- 1 1/2 lbs ground turkey or chicken
- 4 slices dried Ezekiel or any sprouted grain bread, crumbled
- 1/2 small, sweet onion minced
- 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
- 1/3 cup finely chopped dried cranberries
- 2 fresh garlic cloves, minced
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- avocado oil cooking spray
How to make Cranberry Turkey Meatballs
*NOTE: The Ezekiel bread needs to be dried out for a few days on the counter similar to any stuffing bread.
In a large bowl add the ground meat, Ezekiel breadcrumbs, onion, parsley, chopped dried cranberries, garlic, eggs, and all seasonings.
Stir to combine well, then form into Tablespoon meatballs. I got around 20 meatballs using a cookie scoop.
Preheat your air fryer to 380 degrees f. for 5 minutes. Cook the meatballs in 2 batches, to avoid overcrowding your air fryer basket.
Cook each batch for 12-14 min, flipping each meatball after 10 minutes of cooking.
For Oven:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees f.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, then add the meatballs to the sheet, with about 1 inch between each meatball.
Bake for 35 – 40 minutes, flipping once halfway.
Keep leftovers in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Enjoy!
❤️Rachel
Rachel’s Tips for Best Results
- IMPORTANT!: The Ezekiel Bread must be dried out a few days ahead of time just like traditional bread that would be used in meatballs or stuffing.
- ❤️Many health food stores and Amazon carry apple juice-sweetened dried cranberries. Most commercial dried cranberries contain a lot of added refined sugar so choose wisely and/or be aware of what you really want to use here. You could also dry your own cranberries using fresh organic cranberries. There are many recipes online for drying cranberries in your oven for food dehydrator.
Interested in trying more recipes that use healthy Ezekiel bread? They you may like Ezekiel Bread Stuffing, Favorite Salsa & Healthier Ezekiel Baked Tortilla Chips, or Grinch Toast – Ezekiel Bread with Avocado, Strawberries, & Chia Seeds
Cranberry Turkey Meatballs in the Air Fryer
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs ground turkey or chicken
- 4 slices dried Ezekiel or any sprouted grain bread, crumbled
- 1/2 small, sweet onion minced
- 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
- 1/3 cup finely chopped dried cranberries
- 2 fresh garlic cloves, minced
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- avocado oil cooking spray
Instructions
- In a large bowl add the ground meat, Ezekiel breadcrumbs, onion, parsley, chopped dried cranberries, garlic, eggs, and all seasonings.
- Stir to combine well, then form into Tablespoon meatballs. I got around 20 meatballs using a cookie scoop.
For Air fryer:
- Preheat your air fryer to 380 degrees f. for 5 minutes.
- Cook the meatballs in 2 batches, to avoid overcrowding your air fryer basket.
- Cook each batch for 12-14 min, flipping each meatball after 10 minutes of cooking.
For Oven:
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees f.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, then add the meatballs to the sheet, with about 1 inch between each meatball.
- Bake for 35 – 40 minutes, flipping once halfway.
- Keep leftovers in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
