Does anybody have a good vegetarian meatball recipe?

[Ruby Reason]

I've been in the mood for a meatball sub. We are lacto-ovo and occasionally we purchase the pre-made veggie sausage, burgers, or dogs, but I've not found a veggie "meatball". Most of the recipes I've tried have included tofu and they have either been bland or the consistency isn't right.

My girls love being vegetarian, but none of them are overly fond of tofu. I like it, but I guess I don't cook it right for them. So any recipes or suggestions would be nice. Something that could be served with spaghetti for my sister's visits would interest her too.

[Renew Deal]

1. Have you considered falafel?

[GoCubsGo]

5. Or, any other bean cake recipe.

That's essentially what falafels are--bean cakes that are shaped in balls rather than patties. I would think that most beans are interchangeable, and if one has a favorite bean cake recipe, just make 'em into balls.

[Gormy Cuss]

2. Have you asked the veganistas?

That group has several good vegetarian cooks.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=forum&id=1131

Falafel have excellent meatball qualities but the flavoring is a little weird for spaghetti sauce, so that means falafel mix is no good. However, I think that a decent meatball could be made using a falafel recipe and substituting a few things, namely removing the non-Italian spices like coriander and substituting some dried basil and rehydrated, minced porcini.

Since you do eat eggs and cheese, a bread crumb based meatball with some beans or nuts, grated cheese, minced garlic, onions, and mushrooms* would probably work too, especially if you incorporated an egg or two as a binder. You could buy commercial bread crumbs with Italian seasoning to cut down on the guess work, or incorporate dried basil, parsley, a little paprika, and black pepper in the mix. Everything but the egg should be blended in a food processor to get the right texture.

I haven't tried this recipe but it looks like a good starting point. It uses rice as the grain filler:
http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/3074

*either fully sweated down, cooked mushrooms or rehydrated dried ones are best because there's more shroom flavor packed in a small quantity that way.

[HopeHoops]

7. "Veganistas" sounds a wee bit naughty.

[Gormy Cuss]

13. If the fiber shoe fits...

[beac]

3. Not a recipe, but a shopping suggestion...

Quorn brand makes a good veggie meatball that is soy-free:
http://www.quorn.us/products/Meatless_Meatballs.aspx

I just discovered Dominex brand eggplant-based veggie meatballs and found them delicious: http://www.dominexeggplant.com/products-meatballs.html
Of course, I discovered them on "closeout" so I'll likely never taste that deliciousness again.
(They do contain soy.)

[GoCubsGo]

4. I've purchased other meatless meatballs.

Unfortunately, I can't remember the brand. There are several out there, and if one has a Whole Foods or some other big natural foods grocer nearby, I suspect you'll find all sorts of refrigerated and frozen meatlessballs. I like Quorn products, but haven't tried the eggplant products. I haven't been able to find them on closeout, and they're too pricey for me otherwise.

Here's a recipe using a fairly common beef substitute from Lightlife brands:
http://www.lightlife.com/recipe_detail.jsp?id=236&gclid=CJC1sqKLha4CFUSo4AodR2K-6A

Personally, I find this brand too salty, but that's just me.

[HopeHoops]

6. Curiously, I just bought a box of Morning Star "meatballs" today - new product.

I can't speak for their consistency or taste since I haven't sampled them yet, but it is worth a try.

By the way, if you liked "veal parmisan" subs when you were younger, slicing a chik' patty and putting it on a sub roll with mozarella (sp?) and pasta sauce is pretty fucking close - but without the tortured dead animal.

[Ruby Reason]

8. Thanks, but...

while meat (and a huge variety) were in my childhood, veal wasn't. And as an adult, I now appreciate that. Mostly hunting area, frog legs, venison, snake, squirrel, etc.

[HopeHoops]

9. Oh, so you grew up like my wife did. Veal is tortured meat.

Morning Star DID bring back the veggie dogs and I like them much better than the alternatives (SmartDogs are a close second). Funny, but they have a "NEW" banner on the box and the tag line is "America's first veggie dog". Hmm. I seem to remember them from long ago, frozen in blocks of eight that you had to bust apart with a butter knife to cook. "New"?

On Edit: They do contain dairy and eggs - the dogs, not the balls.
On Second Edit: That just REALLY didn't sound right.

[Ruby Reason]

11. That's ok...

we are lacto / ovo. I can definitely relate to your wife!

[HopeHoops]

12. I had frogs legs once. Never had snake (but owned one). Rural girls rule.

[Ruby Reason]

10. Wow! Thank you everybody.

I intend to look for and/ or try every one of these suggestions. Perhaps I'll come up with the perfect vegetarian "meatball" sub ever! Admittedly though, my husband just walked in today with frozen veggie meatballs. I've never seen them. He said they are new. But talk about a coincidence. He and I either have good karma, or I talk in my sleep more than I even want to think about!