This easy slow cooker meal is a light, bright, and healthy spin on a classic favorite. Meatballs simmered for hours in marinara: no candle can make your house smell this good! Enjoy over spaghetti squash “noodles” or regular pasta.
Servings: 6
Serving Size: 4 meatballs (150g) with ¾ cup sauce (190g)
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 3 hours
Nutrition Facts: 304 calories / 24g carbs / 29.5g protein / 9.5g fat
Ingredients:
- 1 ½ lb (680g) 93% lean ground beef
- ¼ cup (21g) quick oats
- 1 large (50g) egg
- 2 tablespoons Italian seasoning (divided)
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder (divided)
- 1 teaspoon salt (divided)
- 2 28-oz cans (1588g) crushed tomatoes
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, lightly mix together the ground beef, oats, egg, 1 tablespoon of the Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon of garlic powder, and ½ teaspoon salt. Form into 24 meatballs, about 2 tablespoons of meat mixture per ball. (However, you can make them any size you want!)
- Place on prepared baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 5-10 minutes until browned.
- To the slow cooker, add the canned tomatoes and the remaining 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, and ½ teaspoon salt. Add the browned meatballs to the sauce.
- Cook on high for 2-3 hours or low for 3-4 hours. Serve over squash noodles (zucchini “zoodles”, butternut or spaghetti squash noodles) or regular pasta. Garnish with fresh basil or crushed red pepper flakes.
Notes:
- If served with 1 cup cooked spaghetti squash “noodles”, macros are: 346 calories / 34g carbs / 30.5g protein / 10g fat . If served with 1 cup cooked spaghetti pasta, macros are: 514 calories / 67g carbs / 37g protein / 10.5g fat.
- You can skip the meatball browning step, although you may find the meatballs crumble into the marinara in the slow cooker.
