Chicken Caesar Meatballs

What would you get if you married a creamy caesar dressing with a crispy-edged, saucy chicken meatballs? You'd get the best dinner you've made all week, guaranteed.

Think juicy, super flavorful chicken meatballs baked right in marinara, with Caesar dressing doing a little double duty—mixed into the meatballs AND swirled into the sauce.

The caesar adds garlic, parmesan, tang and all that yummy savory flavor without requiring you to add 47 different ingredients. Which is exactly the kind of cooking we're doing around here.

Serve these over pasta, pile them onto some crusty bread, or honestly just eat them straight out of the baking dish. No judgment from me.

Ingredients

For the meatballs:

• 1 lb ground chicken

• ⅔ cup My Daily Delish Caesar Dressing, prepared without the water

• 1 egg

• ⅔ cup panko breadcrumbs

• 1 t garlic powder

• ½ t onion powder

• ½ t dried basil

• A shake of dried oregano

• Pinch of red pepper flake

• Salt and pepper, to taste

For baking:

• 3 cups marinara sauce

• Remaining Caesar dressing

• Freshly grated parmesan, for serving

• Fresh basil, optional

  
  

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 400°F.

2. Add the ground chicken, ⅔ cup Caesar dressing, egg, panko, garlic powder, onion powder, basil, oregano, red pepper flake, salt and pepper to a large bowl. Gently mix everything together until just combined. Don't go crazy here- the less you work the chicken, the more tender your meatballs will be.

3. Pour the marinara into a large baking dish.

4. Form the chicken mixture into meatballs and nestle them right into the marinara. I like them to be cozy in there but not totally submerged. Spoon the remaining Caesar dressing over and around the meatballs. This is where the magic happens.

5. Bake at 400°F until the meatballs are cooked through and reach 165°F in the center, about 20-25 minutes depending on their size.

6. Finish with plenty of freshly grated parmesan and some fresh basil or parsley if you're feeling fancy.

Serve over pasta, with toasted bread, or straight from the pan.

And YES, Caesar dressing + marinara works. Promise.