My absolute favorite restaurant in Des Moines is Centro (pronounced chen-tro). If I could eat there once a week, I probably would. I even ate there twice my birthday week – I just can’t get enough. The food is fantastic, they have a great drink selection and the ambiance is perfect.
This week I want to share with you two of my favorite menu items that I remade at home. The first is Turkey Parmesan Meatballs. On Centro’s menu you can order a huge meatball (1 or 2) as an appetizer, that sits in marinara sauce and is served with a light salad on the side. I usually order this as my main meal. It’s delicious and light. Absolutely divine!
These are a little lighter and instead of a light italian salad, I served these with Centro’s Brussels Sprouts (recipe coming later this week).
Seriously, these are FREAKING awesome! My favorite part is the crispy, brown cheese at the bottom of each meatball. Tim and I just couldn’t get enough.
Turkey Parmesan Meatballs (Recipe inspired from here)
1 lb. ground turkey
2 Tbsp. onion, chopped
1/2 C. Parmesan
1/2 C. breadcrumbs
zest of 1/2 lemon
1 Tbsp. parsley, chopped
1 minced clove garlic
1 Tsp. fennel seeds
1 egg, whisked
salt & pepper to taste
1 14 oz. canned marinera sauce
3 Tbsp. olive oil
4 oz fresh shredded mozzarella
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Throw in all the ingredients – except for the last 3 – into a bowl, and mix well. Make large balls with large cookie scoop (or hands), and arrange them on a oil sprayed foil sheet. Open the canned marinera sauce, and in bowl, mix 1 spoon of the sauce and 3 Tbsp. olive oil. Use a brush to rub the mixture on the meatballs. Put in the oven and bake for 15 mins.
Take meatballs out from the oven and add some pizza sauce to the meatballs. Take a small hand full of mozzarella cheese and place on top each meatball. Place meatballs back into the oven 3 to 5 mins for the cheese to toast. Empty out the can of sauce into a small saucepan and heat up. Remove meatballs from oven. To serve, spoon some marinera sauce onto plate and place meatball on top of sauce.
Serve with light salad and italian dressing or Centro Brussels Sprouts.
