Maple Meatballs

Are any of you frequent potluck-party-goers out in the grand blogosphere familiar with Lil' Smokies? They are miniature sausages in a barbecue sauce - normally heated in a slow cooker. They are quite popular here in Utah and frequently grace a potluck table. Well my confession is... I am not a fan. It is probably because I am not a big fan of sausage but I like sausage a WHOLE lot more than I like Lil' Smokies.

But I always like a nicely flavored meatball and so when I ran across this recipe I knew it was one that I wanted to try. I have had it saved for a long time because it is not a recipe that calls for ingredients I would normally have on hand. If you have pure maple syrup and chili sauce on hand - props to you. I have actually never even purchased either of those. The chili sauce bottle looks just like a ketchup bottle and it tastes a lot like it too (with a slight kick to it). I was expecting a lot more heat and was pleasantly surprised when I tested it before dumping it into my pan. Not that I don't like heat but when it calls for as much maple syrup as it does chili sauce you have to worry a bit... If you have an aversion to heat, this is not a recipe that you need to avoid. The finished product is nothing I would consider "hot."

Everyone loved these meatballs and the aroma they gave off drove everyone mad with longing. Everyone talked about how good they were and praised my cooking abilities.

We'll just keep it as our secret about how simple this recipe really is. Now I just need to make some more meatball meals to use up the other 4 pounds of meatballs I have....

The picture and recipe are courtesy of Real Mom Kitchen and can be found at this site here: http://realmomkitchen.com/456/maple-meatballs/

Maple Meatballs
Real Mom Kitchen (I doubled the recipe - meatballs and sauce.)

1/2 cup real maple syrup
1/2 cup chili sauce
2 teaspoons dried chives (or 2 tablespoons fresh chives)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
26 (1 pound) frozen, fully cooked meatballs, thawed

In a saucepan, combine syrup, chili sauce, chives, soy sauce,and ground mustard. Bring to a low boil. Add meatballs and then return to a boil. Simmer over medium heat for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally until meatballs are thoroughly heated. Serve as an appetizer with toothpicks or over hot cooked rice. Makes 5-6 servings.