Cheeseburger Meatballs with Special Sauce.
Meet my new obsession: cheeseburger meatballs!
Seriously, cue all the exclamation points.
!!!!!!!
Oh my gosh. I cannot even EXPLAIN how delish these are. Like… wow.
I’m actually stumped for words.
I have to tell you how this recipe came about! My cousin Lacy who works with me always gives me the best recipe ideas. If you have read the blog over the last decade or have any of my books, you know this. Some of my favorite recipes were born from her ideas and suggestions!
Right now, Lacy is nine months pregnant and juuuust about to have a baby – and she asked me what I thought about cheeseburger meatballs. Pretty sure she thought that maybe it was a weird pregnancy recipe craving or something. I don’t blame her, considering when I was pregnant with Max, I thought mac and cheese crostini sounded good. Hmmm.
I was on the fence for a second but decided we had to try it. Holy cow, was that the right decision.
They are amazing!
P.S. head to instagram to see me make these today, step-by-step.
I’ve made cheese stuffed meatballs before. That’s nothing new. And while these cheese stuffed meatballs are super good, it’s the combination of everything that makes you lose your mind.
Cheeseburger meatballs perfection:
The meatball plus the sauce.
Plus the lettuce and tomato!
And the pickled onions.
All in one bite, together. DREAMY.
It reminds me of my cheeseburger chopped salad in the best way possible.
This combination is a flavor bomb in your mouth. It’s literally like eating a burger, minus the bun of course. Weirdly enough I occasionally LOVE a burger wrapped in iceberg. It’s so refreshing and crisp.
When it comes to serving, I like to do a sweet potato fry or round. You can also do a regular fry, smashed potatoes or even roasted broccoli. Honestly, I think they are amazing on their own. And of course, I guess you COULD stick them on a bun if you’d like! Make a little slider or what not.
Make it this week!
Cheeseburger Meatballs
Cheeseburger Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- ½ cup seasoned breadcrumbs (you can sub GF crumbs or almond meal here)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 12 cubes of cheddar cheese, about 1-inch in size
- 1 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, freshly grated
- shredded lettuce, for serving
- sliced cherry tomatoes, for serving
- pickled onions, for serving
- pickles, for serving
special sauce
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon ketchup
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- 1 tablespoon dill relish
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- pinch salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a bowl, combine the ground beef, egg, breadcrumbs, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Mix until just combined. Do not overmix! Form the mixture into meatballs about 1.5 to 2 inches in size - roughly the size of a golf ball.
- Take the cheddar cheese cubes and stick one inside each meatball, forming the beef around it, sealing it so the cheese stays inside. Repeat with remaining meatballs.
- Heat the olive oil in a large oven-safe skillet over medium heat. Add the meatballs in a single layer and brown on all sides, cooking for about 5 minutes total. If there is a lot of excess grease, you can remove the grease with a spoon. Do not worry if some of the cheese spills out!
- Place the skillet in the oven and cook for 10 minutes. Remove the skillet and cover the meatballs with the grated cheese. Return the skillet to the oven for 1 to 2 minutes, just until the cheese melts.
- Serve the meatballs immediately with the lettuce, tomatoes, pickles and special sauce!
special sauce
- Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix until combined.
Did you make this recipe?
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I appreciate you so much!
Long live cheese.
12 Comments on “Cheeseburger Meatballs with Special Sauce.”
Seriously……!!!
BRILLIANT
making these tonight
thank you!! enjoy!!
Hi Jessica. I have a question, and a “thank you”. My question regards your special sauce recipe for these meatballs, which sounds so delicious. For the Ketchup, you’ve written 1 tablespoon”s”. I would love clarification if the “s” was perhaps a typo, or if you meant multiple tablespoons of this ingredient. My “thank you” is for putting Love and Olive Oil’s Bluebery Sourdough pancakes into my consciousness….we had them this morning, and boy oh boy, do you ever know how to find these tasty’s!
hi jeff!! it is 1 tablespoon – the extra S was just a typo! of course, if you make the sauce and determine you like ketchup so much that you want to add more, feel free. :)
thank you!!
This sounds amazing! But I may just make them in the oven…the only way I make meatballs these days. I can’t deal with turning them on the stove haha!
Just coming back to say we had these last night – so good! I baked them in the oven for about 18-20 min so they were hands-free. And do not skimp out on making the special sauce…YUM!
These look delicious! I also think our boys would love them! Do your kiddos eat them? Our boys are the same exact ages as your two (same birthday months)! I also would rather stick them in the oven! Do you have a recommendation on temp/time?
Super simple and delicious! I stuck some sliced olives on the side to make “eyes” aka, make the kids laugh in honor of Halloween week. I should have doubled the recipe, everyone loved it… the sauce is a must make too.
These were super easy to make and delicious! Two reasons to love it and make again! Love the special sauce! It’s good on fries, too!
My 14-year-old son hates meatballs. HATES THEM. Like, it’s family lore. But he LOVES cheeseburgers. When I saw these, I knew I had to try them. Tonight, Joey took his first bite (with much skepticism). He LOVED THEM!! He went back for seconds!! I even took a picture- wish I could attach it here. Thank you for these- they are staying in our rotation for good!
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Hi! Trying these out for dinner this week. How do you recommend storing them if I wanted to meal prep ahead of time?