Meatball Poppers

Today is another great recipe from my party over the weekend and you will not be disappointed in these cute, little breaded meatballs. There are many ways to pull these together and after I share the recipe I’ll list some alternatives for you.

32 small, cooked & thawed, beef or turkey meatballs (about 1 inch balls)

2 cans (8 oz each) refrigerated crescent dinner rolls

1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1 egg, beaten

Heat oven to 350*. Lightly spray baking sheet.

Open crescent dough and carefully lay out on a lightly floured surface, separated into 8 rectangles (2 triangles each). Using your fingers and a small amount of water as needed, gently press perforations to seal the triangles together. Flip over to flour both sides lightly. Using rolling pin, very gently but firmly roll out into a square. Use a sharp paring knife and cut out 4 squares.

Place a pinch of cheese in the middle of each dough square. Put meatball on top of cheese and slowly work the dough around it, pressing it together at the top. Turn the ball over and set it on the baking sheet, thick dough side down. Continue until all the meatballs have been wrapped this way.

Beat the egg and lightly brush over the dough-covered balls.

Bake approximately 15 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately move from pan to cooling rack.

Okay, so here are some other things you could put into the poppers:

Sauerkraut

Thousand Island Dressing

Marinara Sauce (or serve it on the side)

Mozzarella Cheese

On top you could sprinkle:

Caraway Seeds

Sesame Seeds

*If you add any of these other ingredients inside the popper, I would highly recommend using more dough, say 3 instead of 4 meatballs per rectangle, and cutting the meatballs in half. You would then only need about a dozen meatballs to begin with. You could also enlist the help of a  muffin tin but I found it easier to just wrap the dough around the meatball by hand.

These went over quite well and I was surprised at how yummy they were with so few ingredients. If I make these again I will probably cut the meatball in half and use a little more cheese, and serve with some warm marinara 🙂 I also need to find an alternative to the canned dough.

Make sure you make these for your next party. They were perfect little finger-style sammies!

Food on Friday: Finger Foods for Parties