Vegan Walnut Meatballs. Soy and Gluten Free. Simply Delish

Years ago, I ate the most delicious vegetarian walnut meatballs with cheese in a recipe.  Cheese and I don’t really get along and I have yearned to replicate those meatballs for sometime.  Over the holidays, I decided to tinker with two different walnut recipe to make them dairy and soy free.  Well, I think I did it.

Before I give you the recipe, note, that this recipe is a 2 day recipe since you want to soak both the walnuts and oats for easier digestion. Soaking with an acidic medium helps breaks down the phytic acid of legumes and grains. [Source.] This acid inhibits mineral absorption in the intestines.  (For an interesting read, see Katie at Kitchen Stewardship’s article.  She really makes it easy to understand.)

Soaking Oats

To soak oats, follow these instructions.    You will need to adjust the amount of the ingredients to half since I only used one cup of rolled oats.  Don’t use the quick cooking oats.  Also, note, I don’t eat dairy so I used vinegar.  You can use cidar vinegar, lemon, or vinegar.  If you eat dairy, you can add whey.   To soak the oats, I used the following recipe:

1 cup of Organic rolled oats  (Those who have gluten issue, make sure your rolled oats are gluten free.)

1 cup of  warm water

1 tablespoon of vinegar

1 tablespoon of freshly ground wheat, buckwheat, rye or spelt.  (For Gluten free intolerance sufferers, use buckwheat.)

I didn’t realize I need to do this last step until I read Amanda Rose’s article, “Oats and Phytic Acid.”  In fact, she doesn’t recommend using whey or any dairy products.  Her method is simply adding a complimentary grain as noted above to the mix.  How do you soak your oats?

Let the mixture sit for 24 hours on your countertop. (No less than 7  hours according to Sarah of the Healthy Home Economist.  Note, she doesn’t use the complimentary grains.) Cover the mixture.  The oats will absorb all of the water and they will be sticky.

(By the way, see here for another oatmeal recipe that sounds yummy.)

Soaking the Walnuts

I soak all of my nuts since it is easier for me to digest. Add a little bit of salt to the water.

Soaking breaks down the enzyme inhibitor in the nuts.  In addition, they are easier to work with in raw recipes.  Normally, I fill the water over the tops of the walnuts  and soak for at least 8 hours.  Some people also let them sprout for a couple hours thereafter.  I didn’t in this case.

My Combination Recipe

I combine a raw walnut zucchini recipe with another walnut recipe.  By the way, if you want to stop the raw recipe, that is okay. I tasted it before I messed with the recipe.  It tasted amazing.

Here is my recipe:

1 1/3 cups raw walnuts soaked for several hours
2 tablespoon nutritional yeast  (Not Brewers Yeast.)
1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 teaspoons Tamari low sodium, gluten free  sauce.  (You can use soy sauce if you want.)
2 teaspoon garlic
Minced 1 teaspoon thinly sliced green onion (white part only)  (Note, this was in the original raw recipe and I just kept it in.)
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh parsley
1 cup of soaked rolled oats
1/2 medium onion (You can add a whole one if you like)
Hand full of Daiya Vegan Mozzarella Cheese, optional. (I love this cheese.)

2 Teaspoons of Poultry Seasoning.  (Here is how to make your own. Really simple.)

Strain the walnuts and use the water for your plants.  Then chop the walnuts in a food process.  Combine the walnuts and all the other ingredients in a bowl.  Spray your hands with PAM since the mixture will be sticky and hard for you to make the balls.

Make the balls about 1 inch and place them on a cookie tray.  I ended up making about 30 balls.  Cook them at 375 for 30 minutes.

If you have any leftover mixture, just put it on the tray.  If it burns, it is still delicious.

You can play around with this recipe by deleting the green onions and  adding more onion.  In addition, you can add more Daiya for a cheesier taste.

Add sauce!  I have to say these balls were delicious.

Join the Conversation

• Do you soak your grains and nuts? If so, how?
• Do you have a favorite vegan faux meatball recipe?
• Have you ever made Walnut Balls?  If so, link or state your recipe in the comments.
• How do you think the dish would taste with Miso instead of soy sauce?

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