Name: Turkey and Veggie Meatballs for Baby Led Weaning
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 16
Ingredients: 2 tablespoon ground turkey, cooked (22 grams cooked) See note 1; 1/2 Slice onion, chopped; Avocado oil; 1 Piece whole grain bread; Half a small carrot, sliced (30 grams); 1/3 Red or Orange bell pepper, chopped (50 grams); 1 Egg

A stack of turkey and veggie meatballs on a plate.

These super juicy turkey and veggie meatballs for baby are delicious, packed with veggies and requires no deep frying. They contain all the nutrients a toddler needs in a meal while they learn to self-feed!

A Nutritious Self-Feed Meal

This recipe was created specially for my baby daughter so she could self-fed via baby led weaning . I wanted something that was easy to grab with her little hands and, of course, it had to be nutritious.

These turkey and veggie meatballs don't require any deep-frying in oil so they are extra healthy for baby. They are packed with veggies and nutrients and so delicious and nutritious that Bibi doesn't even realize she is eating all those veggies. I know these meatballs will be perfect for the picky eaters in your life too.

Each serving of 8 turkey and veggie meatballs has 1 serving of carbs, 1 serving of vegetables and 1 serving of protein.

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Close up of turkey and veggie meatballs set on a counter.

How to Cook Baby Led Weaning Turkey and Veggie Meatballs

To make perfect meatballs every time and without any cross-contamination risk, I pan fry the ground turkey before shaping the meatballs. Also, cooking the turkey beforehand is a great way to meal prep! You can cook the ground turkey, keep it aside in the fridge or freezer and then just make fresh meatballs in half the time. This method also allows you to move and go do a different thing while you are cooking without the risk of the cross contamination that comes with working with raw meat. That's always a concern of mine while baby is playing independently while I'm cooking, you just never know when you have to put aside something to tend to them. (Btw, for those who prefer, these turkey and veggie meat balls can be made with raw ground turkey as well. See recipe notes.)

Step-By-Step

Frying onions on a hot pan. — Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with unbleached parchment paper and set aside.

Traslucent onions in a pan. — In a large pan over medium heat pan fry the onion with avocado until translucent. Reserve for later.

Browned ground turkey and onions in a pan. — Pan fry turkey until browned. Reserve for later.

All the ingredients in a dish to make veggie and turkey meatballs. — Toast the whole grain bread until golden brown. Transfer to a food processor and pulse until pulverized. Set aside. Repeat the process with the chopped bell peppers and sliced carrots.
Transfer all the ingredients to a bowl.

All the ingredients combined in a dish for veggy and turkey meatballs. — Mix all the ingredients together until incorporated.

Formed baby led weaning meatballs on a baking pan. — Scoop out the mixture and shape them into round balls or use a cookie scoop with trigger. Place onto the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes until the skin is firm and inside temperature is above 160 F. Remove from the oven and let them cool down completely before serving.

Best Tools for Making Baby Meatballs:

Unbleached parchment paper will save time from spraying baking sheet and the cleanup afterwards. Unbleached paper is more baby-friendly.
Cookie scoop with trigger will save tons of time from forming round meatballs with your hands. Of course, I also use this one for cookie batter too!
Food processor quickly pulverizes food into small pieces without the need for lots of chopping and grating. This is especially useful for pulverizing the hard carrots in this recipe. This is the processor I use in my kitchen for everything! Even making almond flour for macarons over at IndulgeWithMimi. If you don't have one, use a grater instead.
This highly rated microplane grater works efficiently for zesting and grating. I love how efficient it is.

How to store these Toddler Friendly Meatballs

Cooked ground turkey can be used to shape the meatballs fresh every time. Ground meat can last in the fridge for 3 days.
Baked turkey veggie meatballs can last in the fridge for up to 3 days in an air-tight container and re-heated before serving.
Baked turkey veggie meatballs can be frozen for up to 2 months as a quick meal for baby or toddler. To serve, just take them directly from the freezer to the oven.

Baby led weaning meatballs stacked on a plate shot from above.

How to Serve Veggie & Turkey Meatballs to Baby

You can make smaller meatballs to fit your child's ability to self-feed or you can make them larger and just cut them up. Please note that the smaller they are made, the harder they become once baked. (I prefer to cut up larger meatballs into 3 equal parts for baby. The skin makes it easier to hold while the inside remains soft for baby to gum.)
Pair it with this No-Sugar Added Sweet Tomato Sauce and pasta for a delicious dinner idea for toddler. For lunch, serve it with a nutritious vegetable squash soup or melty soft vegetable soup on the side.
Serve veggie and turkey meatballs with melted cheese on top and a side of fruits and peas for a complete meal from all food groups.

These turkey and veggie meatballs have been so convenient for me and so well-received by Bibi. I really hope you and your little ones enjoy them too.

XOXO,
Mimi

Yield: 16