Mozzarella Stuffed Chicken Meatballs With Marinara Sauce -- 10 Smart Points

MOZZARELLA STUFFED CHICKEN MEATBALLS WITH MARINARA SAUCE

12 oz. ground Smart Chicken
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
pinch of garlic powder
salt and pepper
2 pieces Sargento string cheese
2 T. Italian breadcrumbs
1 1/2 cups Bertoli marinara sauce
4 oz. uncooked weight, Reisa pasta
3/4 tsp. olive oil
1 T. grated Parmesan cheese

Place ground chicken into mixing bowl; add
the Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt and pepper.

Using a small disher, scoop out 12 portions of the chicken mixture onto waxed paper.

Cut the string cheese into 12 equal pieces.

Using your fingers, gently press the meat into a small round.  Place 1 piece of string cheese in the center.  Form the meat around the cheese, making sure it's completely sealed.

Using 12 oz. of ground chicken and a small sized disher I got 12 meatballs.

Place meatballs into preheated air fryer 350°.  I misted mine with the 3/4 tsp. of olive oil to help get a nice browning on the exterior.

Bake for 5 minutes, then check them to see if they need to be turned or to adjust the temperature.  Cook an additional 4-5 minutes.

As you can see, some of the cheese melted and came through the meat.

While meatballs are cooking, place the marinara sauce in a saucepan and bring to a simmer.  Place meatballs into the heated sauce.  Spoon sauce over top of meatballs.  Cover and keep warm while you prepare the pasta.

Spoon the meatballs and marinara sauce over the cooked pasta.  Sprinkle with grated Parmesan if desired.

The casserole dish I used measures 6 1/2 x 9 1/2".   This makes 4 generous servings. 

Next time I make these, I'll use homemade pasta sauce.  It will be zero points and not as sweet as the jarred sauce.



SMART POINTS
chicken                        12
string cheese                 2
bread crumbs                2
marinara sauce           12
olive oil                        1
pasta                           10
Parmesan                     1

How to cook when its 100°

This is a super easy meal to put together when it's just too darned hot to cook.  We're had over 40 days of temperatures over 100° so tonight I pulled out one of my standby recipes.  I keep the ingredients on hand for this because I can throw it together and have it on the table in about 30 minutes and it will feed a lot of people.  For just the two of us, I freeze containers of it to heat later.


Penne Pasta with Marinara Sauce

1 jar Bertoli Marinara Sauce
1/2 of a 14.5 oz. box of Ronzoni Penne Rigate
Johnsonville Italian sausage patties
Italian seasoning
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese and/or Mozzarella cheese


I cook the sausage according to the package instructions, then crumble it up.
Add the jar of marinara sauce and mix well.
I add about 1 tsp. of Italian seasoning to the mixture and about 1/3 cup of water
Cook the pasta until just al dente, drain well and add to sausage mixture.
Stir in the freshly grated cheese.
Put mixture into a microwave safe dish and continue cooking it in the microwave
until the pasta is completely done.

With some crusty garlic bread, salad and a good house red wine, you'll have a meal you'd be proud to serve to anyone!