Italian Mushroom Walnut "Meatballs"

My Mom has always told me I make the best meat balls.  Which was funny because I don't eat meat, I simply make them for loved ones because I am nice.  My Mom loves them, so I make them once in a while, but on Friday I decided I would like some meatballs as well, so I decided to create a vegan version of them.  I had a bunch of leftover mushrooms that needed to be used up, so I thought what better a base than meaty tasting mushrooms for my "meatballs"!  I combined them with walnuts, nutritional yeast for a cheesy flavor, and plenty of herbs, which is actually the base for one of my veggie burgers, but worked really well as a "meatball".  I was afraid that maybe they would be too mushy, but this was not the case at all, they held together well, had wonderful flavor, and once I ladled some of my usual pasta sauce over them they were pretty amazing if I do say so myself! 

I was too lazy to make pasta, so I opted for a piece of toasted garlic bread instead which ended up being a delicious accompaniment!  My Mom who is my biggest food critic loved the meatballs and told me to never make the ones containing real meat again because these were better!  Hmm...maybe I am rubbing off on her a bit?  Well they were pretty darn good in my opinion, and if you would like to try an awesome meat free "meatball"  here is the recipe!

1 Tbsp each dried basil, parsley, and oregano

Bread:

Preheat the oven to 475.  To make meatballs, heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat.  Add onion, and saute until softened, about 5 minutes, then add the mushrooms and saute until soft, about 3 minutes.  Add garlic and saute another minute until fragrant, then remove from heat.  Place mixture in a food processor along with walnuts, breadcrumbs, nutritional yeast, sea salt, herbs and pepper.  Process until smooth.  Add a little more breadcrumbs if too sticky, then shape into 16 little balls and place on a baking sheet lined with foil and sprayed with non-stick spray.  Bake for about 15-20 minutes until heated through, and starting to brown. 

To prepare bread, brush with olive oil, and rub with garlic.  Sprinkle with sea salt and vegan parmesan and place on a foil lined baking sheet and bake in the oven until crispy and browned at the edges.  To serve, place a piece of bread on a plate, place a few meatballs on top of it and ladle the sauce over.  Enjoy!