Dog Friendly Meatballs (with Spaghetti)

Ingredients

• 60 g broccoli (2 oz)
• 60 g carrots (2 oz)
• 450 g extra lean ground beef (1 lb)
• 30 - 60 g canned sardines (1 - 2 oz (in spring water, and no salt))
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 Pinch black pepper
• 4 tsp kelp powder
• 226 g pumpkin puree (8 oz (canned or fresh, make sure it's not pumpkin pie filling))
• 115 g red bell pepper (4 oz)
• 180 mL water (¾ cup)
• 226 g strawberries (8 oz (frozen or fresh))
• 250 g zucchini
• 60 g uncooked spaghetti (2 oz (optional))

Steps

1. 1

   Place the carrots and broccoli in a small food processor, and process until finely chopped. Alternatively, you can use the grater box and knife to finely grate / chop the vegetables.

2. 2

   In a large bowl, place the ground beef, chopped vegetables, canned sardines, egg, turmeric, black pepper, and kelp powder.

3. 3

   Mix the ingredients very well until all the ingredients are evenly mixed together.

4. 4

   Using a spoon, divide the meatballs into portions. I weigh each portion at 30 g, and then split each in half, so that the meatballs are about 14 - 15 g each. You can also keep them at 30 g for larger meatballs.

5. 5

   Roll each portion in the palm of your hand to form a smooth ball. You should end up with 40 - 44 small meatballs, or 20 - 22 large meatballs.

6. 6

   Preheat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat.

7. 7

   When the pan is hot, place the meatballs in the pan. The heat should not be too high, as you don’t want the meat to caramelize or form a crust. It just needs to cook through. Move the meatballs around with a spatula to ensure they are cooking evenly from all sides. This can take between 5 - 10 minutes, depending on the shape of the meatballs.

8. 8

   As soon as the meatballs are cooked through, place them all on a plate that is lined with paper towels to absorb excess fat, and to cool down.

9. 9

   Place the pumpkin puree and red bell pepper in the food processor and process until the bell peppers have also pureed and mixed with the pumpkin puree. If needed, you can add the water to the processor as well.

10. 10

    Add the pureed pepper and pumpkin into a small pot, along with the water (if you did not use it to puree the bell peppers above). Heat over medium heat while stirring until the mixture comes to a simmer.

11. 11

    Once the pasta sauce has simmered, remove the pot from the heat. You also have the option to let it simmer for longer if you want the sauce to be thicker.

12. 12

    Let the sauce cool down slightly before adding the strawberries.

13. 13

    Puree the strawberries and add them to the cooled sauce, and stir to mix. Alternatively, you can place the strawberries in a blender with the pumpkin base and blend it until smooth. A stick blender can also be used for this.

14. 14

    ALTERNATIVELY, You can just blend the pumpkin, bell pepper, and strawberry together and add just enough water to get a sauce consistency and skip cooking altogether.

15. 15

    Pasta is optional. But can be given as a special treat, occasionally. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Break the pasta in half. Place the pasta in the boiling water and cook for about 12 - 15 minutes, or until the pasta is beyond the al dente stage and is soft. Do not add any salt or oil to the water or pasta.

16. 16

    Drain and let the pasta cool.

17. 17

    While the pasta is cooking, slice the zucchini lengthwise, and then julienne the slices lengthwise to create “noodles”. You can also use a spiralizer, or a julienne peeler to create the noodles.

18. 18

    Place the zucchini noodles on a microwave-safe plate and drizzle with a little water. Cover and microwave for about 1 - 2 minutes to steam the zucchini (the white part will start to look translucent). If you prefer, you can double the amount of zucchini instead of making regular pasta.

19. 19

    Let the steamed zucchini cool down.

20. 20

    Place the cooled down meatballs with the cooled pasta sauce and toss to combine.

21. 21

    In a dog food bowl, add about ¼ of the cooked pasta and ¼ of the steamed zucchini. Gently mix to combine.

22. 22

    Then spoon over ¼ of the meatballs (about 10 - 11) and the pasta sauce. The amount you serve will depend on your dog (see recipe notes).

23. 23

    Serve to your dogs.