These turkey meatballs can do no wrong. They’re great with pasta, rice or mash, or simply delicious eaten off a toothpick as an appetizer or as a snack. The herbs and caramelized veggies adds so much flavour and once cooked, they freeze well, so if you can’t use a whole batch, freeze what’s left to brighten up one of those down days when you have no energy to cook yet you want to eat something good that can please the whole family.

1. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a small skillet over a medium-high heat. Add the shallots, carrot, and celery and sauté for 2 min. Sprinkle with salt, then turn the heat down and partially cover. Sweat until the vegetables have started to soften and caramelize, about 5 to 8 min. Set aside.

2. While the veggies are sweating, beat together the egg, herbs, salt, and freshly ground black pepper in a bowl. Add the vegetables when ready and mix in. Add the turkey and breadcrumbs and combine everything together until well blended. The mixture will be quite wet.

3. Sprinkle a plate with the flour. With a tsp, scoop out some of the turkey mixture and lightly roll into a ball with your hands. Lightly roll them in the flour to coat. Set onto another plate. Repeat until all the mixture is used up.

4. Heat the remaining 2 tbsp of oil in a large skillet over a medium-high heat. Brown the meatballs on all sides until they are golden. Do in batches so you do not overcrowd the pan. At this point they will be ready to add basic tomato sauce to finish cooking to eat with pasta or serve in a roll.

Basic tomato sauce:
1. Heat the oil in a wok or heavy frying pan over medium-high heat. When the oil starts to shimmer add the garlic and stir-fry until golden. Do not let it burn or it will become bitter. If you like a spicy sauce, add the pepper.

2. Add the tomatoes and stir-fry. There will be a lot of spitting and hissing as the wet tomatoes hit the hot oil. Turn the heat to medium-low and cook the tomatoes down until they are reduced by about half and have taken on a more orangey hue. Adjust the seasoning by adding salt to taste. If the sauce looks like it’s drying out too much, add a little water. At this point freeze if not using immediately.

3. Add the Parmesan, taste for seasoning then serve.

Enjoy!