BBQ Meatballs with Pepper and Cheese Animal Cut-Outs
A whimsical after school snack which is sure to please hungry kids. Serve with extra BBQ sauce and a cold glass of milk.
- Preparation:
- Cooking:
- Total:
- Serves: 25 persons
Ingredients
- 2slices bread, crusts removed, torn into pieces
- ½cup whole milk
- 1egg, beaten
- 1tablespoon dried parsley
- ½teaspoon salt
- ⅛teaspoon garlic powder
- ⅛teaspoon onion powder
- ½teaspoon dried Italian herb seasoning
- ¼teaspoon sugar
- 1tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1pound ground beef
- ¼cup grated sweet onion
- 1cup barbecue sauce, plus additional for serving
- 1green bell pepper
- 1orange bell pepper
- 1red bell pepper
- 4(1/4-inch) slices Colby-Monterey Jack cheese
- 4(1/4-inch) slices mild Cheddar cheese
- Animal vegetable cutters
- 29-inch toothpicks
Instructions
Step 1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).Step 2
Soak pieces of torn bread in the milk in a bowl for 5 minutes. Gently squeeze out milk. Add beaten egg to the soaked bread and mix well.Step 3
Mix garlic powder, onion powder, parsley, salt, Italian herb seasoning, sugar, and Parmesan cheese together in a small bowl. Add to bread-egg mixture.Step 4
Place ground beef in a mixing bowl. Add seasoning mixture and onions; mix together with a fork. If mixture is too dry, add up to a tablespoon of milk. Roll into 25 meatballs and arrange on rimmed baking sheet.Step 5
Bake in preheated oven until browned and cooked through, about 18 minutes.Step 6
Drain meatballs on a paper towel. Remove grease from the baking sheet. Transfer meatballs back to the baking sheet. Drizzle 1 cup BBQ sauce over meatballs.Step 7
Return sheet to oven and bake 12 more minutes.Step 8
Use a small animal vegetable cutter to make animals out of green, orange, and red peppers. Cut animals out of Colby Jack and mild Cheddar cheese.Step 9
Drain meatballs on a paper towel and add more BBQ sauce if desired. Add cheese animal cut-out and then animal pepper cut-out to the toothpicks. Work quickly to add toothpick to each meatball.