So I’m over my Asian kick for now, and moving on to Italian flavors for the next few weeks of Meatball Mondays! I don’t know about you guys, but when the cooler weather hits, I start to crave heavier, more comforting flavors in my meals.
It doesn’t get much more comforting than these tender, sagey meatballs, swimming in a butter and white wine sauce that is flavored with crispy Pancetta, and even more fresh sage.
Served over a velvety cauliflower mash? Heaven in a bowl people – believe it.
But don’t let my words convince you, just look at the photos. If that doesn’t make you hungry to make this recipe ASAP, then I give up!
Seriously – if these pictures aren’t making you poke your screen with a fork, then I need to reconsider my career path. Maybe our local Walmart is hiring greeters. I’d be an awesome greeter…
Scratch that, I wouldn’t last a day. I’m pretty sure I don’t have enough restraint for that job…
“Excuse me, Ma’am? Your pajamas are showing. Our clothing section is running a deal on actual pants – you know, for leaving the house in? You’re welcome.”
Suddenly… Unemployment.
Anyhoo, this low carb meatball recipe is inspired by the classic Italian Veal Saltimbocca dish. Traditionally it would include filets of veal pounded thin, fresh sage leaves, and thin ribbons of prosciutto wrapped together and served in a white wine sauce.
I took some liberties in this recipe, replacing the traditional veal with ground turkey because it’s cheaper and easier to find – plus baby cows are adorable as you can see in my Instagram feed.
Instead of Prosciutto, I used chopped Pancetta in the meatball mix, and also in the sauce (you can cheat and use regular bacon if that’s what you have on hand.) There is sage present in all of the elements, but not overpoweringly so.
I served these over the Better than Potatoes Cheesy Cauliflower Puree recipe – it’s optional but I highly recommend it! Cooked spaghetti squash or zucchini “noodles” would also be a great accompaniment.
Overall I was thrilled with how this Saltimbocca concept translated into a low carb meatball recipe. I hope you guys will like it as much as we all did – be sure to let me know the verdict after you try them out!
Turkey Saltimbocca Meatballs – Low Carb and Gluten Free
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
An Italian inspired low carb meatball recipe based on the classic flavors found in Veal Saltimbocca. Gluten free, Keto, LCHF and Atkins friendly recipe the whole family will enjoy. Serve over cauliflower puree for a complete meal.
Ingredients
For the meatballs
- 1 lb ground turkey (or veal if you prefer)
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup almond flour
- 2 Tbsp grated parmesan cheese
- 2 Tbsp chopped raw pancetta (or bacon)
- 1 Tbsp chopped fresh sage
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 Tbsp olive oil for frying
For the sauce:
- 1/4 cup chopped pancetta (or bacon)
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 Tbsp fresh sage, chopped
- 1/2 tsp lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp granulated sugar substitute (Swerve, Splenda, etc.)
- 1/4 cup butter
Instructions
For the meatballs:
- Combine the ground turkey, egg, almond meal, parmesan cheese, chopped pancetta, chopped sage, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a medium bowl and mix thoroughly. For into 12 meatballs. Heat the olive oil in a nonstick pan and cook over medium heat until golden brown and cooked through – about 3 minutes per side. Remove the meatballs from the pan and set aside.
For the sauce:
- Add the pancetta to the same pan that you cooked the meatballs in, leaving all the brown bits in the pan (unless it burned, then start with a fresh pan.) Cook the pancetta for about 2 minutes or until crisp. Add the white wine, sage, lemon juice, garlic powder, and sugar substitute to the pan and cook until reduced by half – about 3 minutes. Add the butter and whisk until melted and the sauce is slightly thickened. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the meatballs back into the sauce and stir until well coated. Serve hot.
Notes
Approx nutrition info per serving: 467 calories, 32g fat, 2.5g net carbs, 36g protein
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 3 meatballs with approximately 2 Tbsp sauce
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This sounds incredible. I think i’d still use the prosciutto though. Makes it more authentic.
These meatballs were tender and perfect paired with the smoked gouda cauliflower mash.
★★★★★
My husband is a huge fan of Veal Saltimboca. These meatballs measured up. I made the meatballs only, to put in soup. They were so good that I made a second recipe of them right after. I used a small cookie scoop to form the meatballs and baked them in a 350 convection oven for 20 mins instead of frying. I plan to make the sauce next time.
★★★★★
These meatballs were excellent and even better the next day….YUMMY! Was so excited about making them, I forgot to make the cauliflower puree, so I made a quick broccoli one instead using steamed frozen broccoli florets. Turned out great! Didn’t have any pancetta so subbed in bacon….delish!
★★★★★
Making this for the third time tonight, however, this time I am making a double batch. Grateful to have fresh sage. It really makes this dish. We use a sauvignon blanc for this recipe.
Thank you!
★★★★★
I made this tonight and my husband and I both enjoyed it! I followed the recipe using bacon instead of Pancetta and doubling the recipe so my husband would have leftovers to take to work for his lunch. The cauliflower purée was great too! I have been making My own version of cauliflower mash for awhile but really liked your technique, it came out a little thicker than mine, so your recipe will be my go to from now on! Thanks for sharing!
I’ve been stalking these meatballs for a week or two now and finally decided to try them. They did not disappoint! They were well seasoned, moist and the sauce was devine. I will most definitely be making these again. The whole family enjoyed.
★★★★★
Still one of my favorites Lora! Glad they were a hit with the whole family!
this was one of the best recipes we’ve had in a long time! I subbed bacon for pancetta and coconut flour for almond flour. Amazing!! Thank you
So glad you liked it Jessica, this is still one of my favorite meatball recipes from last year. So much flavor and so comforting and hearty! Thanks for taking the time to comment!!!
This was AMAZING!! Couldn’t get enough of the sage and bacon white wine sauce. I served it over mashed potatoes but really want to try the cauliflower next time. Thank you for a great recipe!
So glad you liked this one Lina! We loved it so much and I was hoping that more people would try it out! Thanks for letting me know it was a hit!
I’m coming to this late, but wanted to say that I’m thrilled to find this recipe. I haven’t had saltimbocca in so long! I thought I would never have it again due to giving up beef for religious reasons. I’ll be making this tonight.
Hope you enjoy them Anne, let me know! :)
These are so good! I did the lazy way and instead of making meat balls, just made a large skillet of yumminess. Thank goodness I portioned it out ahead of time or I would have eaten it all in a sitting. So tasty! I’m thinking for the holidays instead of giving stuff, of giving food to people and this will be in that mix if I can get myself organized. Thanks again for all the wonderful recipes :)
Great Recipe – now a favorite in my household. The cauliflower “mashed” potatoes will be featured at my “carb loving” family Thanksgiving dinner as an alternative for my husband and me.
Great recipe. I used bacon in place of pancetta but otherwise followed the directions just as written. My husband really liked it and he usually doesn’t like anything new! Also made the cauliflower “mashed” potatoes which turned out great. This will go on my regular menu plan. Thank you for sharing this great, super easy recipe!
Made these for dinner tonight. The only substitution I made was swapping the almond flour for coconut flour (simply because I haven’t been able to find almond flour anywhere.) The flavor was fantastic!! Loved them! I had mine on mashed cauliflower, but the rest of the family had mashed potato. Wish I had some low-carb tiramisu for dessert. =D
Made these last night too! Flavors were wonderful and adding the raw bacon to the meatball mixture gave the ground turkey so much flavor and moisture. I also took care to make the cauliflower puree just right — no watery puree. Enjoyed a reheated lunch of this today and happy I have more meatballs in the freezer to enjoy later. Great recipe! Thanks so much and also for the great tips on getting the cauliflower dry. Makes such a difference in taste.
Thanks Pat, glad you enjoyed these! And yes, drying out the cauliflower makes a HUGE difference in the final flavor and texture of the puree! Adding a bunch of cheese never hurts either lol!
Do you think I could double this recipe and freeze the meatballs raw to make at a later date?
These were fan-freaking-tastic! Just made them for dinner and served them over mashed cauliflower. I didn’t have any sage on hand, so I used Herbs de Provence so it had a slightly different flavour that just fresh sage, but it was still subtle and savoury. Thanks so much for all your creativity!
I made these meatballs last night using ground round instead of turkey and fresh dill instead of the sage … so, so good …
Those look so yummy! I may have to try these!
*prosciutto* :)
melissa I wondered, how much (gramms,oz) is 1/4 cup butter and 1/3 cup almond flour?do you think you could weigh it for us?or how big is the cup you use for dosage?(maybe 250ml?)
unfortunatelly, here in europe we don´t have cups to measure and I always have problems when I find recipies that measure in cups:(it´s a pitty because I´m often discouraged to make many interesting recipies…
and I would like sooooo much to try this one!
thank you
Hi Mirka, thanks for catching my spelling error on prosciutto – fixed it! Unfortunately I don’t have time to go remeasure or weigh ingredients for every possible equivalent, but you’ll be happy to know that isn’t necessary anyway. Anytime you find a recipe in US measurements and you need it in something else, just use a handy converter like this one to figure out what you’ll need in grams, ounces, ml, etc. Enjoy the meatballs!
These sound gorgeous. And probably best consumed in pyjamas.
Isn’t everything????
OMG – this looks so awesome good. I love every flavor and element of this dish. It almost seems too fancy to make for one, but I deserve it. Running to the store now for fresh sage and ground turkey. The rest is in my fridge and pantry.
Your creativity amazes me and this post, in particular, was so funny and so true! HA!
You DEFINITELY deserve it Pat, and I’m jealous that you don’t have to share, ha ha! Very excited to hear what you thought of this recipe – hopefully you’re eating it with the cauliflower puree too, because it was the perfect vehicle for that delicious sauce! I even loved it leftover for the following two days – sigh, wish I had some right now but alas, they are all gone. I rarely make a meatball recipe more than once just because I’m always working on new ones, but I’d definitely make an exception in this case and will be making these again for sure!
Thank you so much for your generosity and the chance to win this Vitamix! I hope to get the chance to use it for creamy nut butters and smoothies especially! Thanks again for the work you do and encouragement you give in the quest for a healthy life for all! :)
Thanks Sue! :)
Melissa, will you marry me? Just kidding, my husband would probably frown on that but how about moving in next door???
LOL Shirley, maybe you should move to Belize and be my beachside neighbor!! :)