Zucchini & Turkey Croquettes & Veggie Noodles

I LOVE playing with recipes and finding ways to add plants to my classic comfort foods that wouldn’t ordinarily have them. This recipe loads us up on plant foods that are easy to digest. 

Feel free to play with this recipe so it works for your gut health needs, and let me know how it turns out.

Ingredients

Croquettes

• 1 medium size zucchini 
• 1 pound of ground turkey or ground meat of choice
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint leave 
• 1 cup of chopped fresh spinach
• 1/4 cup of freshly chopped parsley
• 2 green onions – green parts only chopped 
• 2 tsp of Italian herbs
• 1 tbsp of garlic-infused olive oil (gives it garlic flavor without giving me the burps)
• 1 tsp of sea salt
• 1 tsp of black pepper
• 1 tsp of crushed red pepper – optional 
• 1 egg (optional) 

Veggie Spiral Noodles

•  1 cup of sliced cherry tomatoes (optional)
• 1 large zucchini 
• 1 large yellow squash
• 2 – 3 tbsp of olive oil 
• red pepper flakes – optional
• sea salt & black pepper for taste

Instructions

Add chia seeds to ground turkey in a large mixing bowl and blend well. Grate your zucchini and squeeze out water using a cheesecloth or paper towel. 

Blend well. Add all the other ingredients and allow the mixture to rest for 10 minutes. 

Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-low heat, add olive oil, and form the turkey mixture into croquette-shaped meatballs. Place in a pan and cook for about 7 minutes per side. 

Set croquettes aside.

Veggie Noodles

Using the same pan, add olive oil and cherry tomatoes. Cook for about 5 minutes or until tomatoes soften and slightly brown. Add veggies and noodles and toss. Cook for about 4 minutes until the noodles are soft. 

Add parmesan or vegan cheese, salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes.

Substitutions & Alterations

*You can bake these in the oven at 400 degrees for 25 minutes or cook them in a skillet like I did. 

*The egg is optional; I added it for extra protein, but it’s not necessary as the chia seeds will do the job in binding. I also use ground-up hemp hearts in place of parmesan. 

*If you do not eat zucchini, use yellow squash as a replacement in croquettes.