Happy November, friends! The holidays are just around the corner and I have the perfect party appetizer for you- Vegan Meatballs served on Ritz crackers!Â
This post is sponsored by Ritz! All opinions are my own. 🙂
Most meatball recipes call for breadcrumbs but when you swap out boring old breadcrumbs for crunchy, buttery Ritz crackers, these vegan meatballs become instantly more delicious!
Even though Ritz crackers taste super buttery, they are 100% plant-based and 1000% delicious! I opted to serve my vegan meatballs on Ritz crackers for even more buttery goodness. With a dollop of chunky bolognese and plant-based mozzarella, these vegan meatball appetizers are simply out of this world!
The vegan meatballs are super duper easy to make! Blitz the Ritz crackers in a food processor until they become crumbs, then mix with the remaining ingredients. I used a small melon scooper to quickly roll out the balls. The whole process takes under 30 minutes. Can you believe that?
The best part about making this amazing vegan meatball appetizer? You can find family size boxes of Ritz crackers at Walmart for just $2.98! They’ve rolled back prices on these crackers and many other snacks and goodies. Be sure to peruse the snack aisle next time you’re shopping for a holiday party!
When you try these vegan meatballs, be sure to let me know how they turned out in the comments! Don’t forget to post a photo to Instagram and tag me #carrotsandflowers! I love seeing your recreations and sharing them in my stories!
For more delicious ways to serve Ritz crackers this holiday season, check out my 5 Minute Vegan Ricotta and my Green Goddess Hummus!
- 2 sleeves Ritz crackers
- 16 oz plant-based ground 'beef'
- 1 shallot
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 tbsp Italian seasoning
- ⅛ tsp red pepper flakes
- ¼ cup plant-based parmesan or mozzarella (optional)
- For serving
- toothpicks
- 1½ cups chunky bolognese
- ¼ cup basil
- 1 cup plant-based mozzarella (optional)
- Preheat the oven to 425 F. Process ½ sleeve of Ritz crackers in a food processor to a crumb consistency. Very finely dice the shallot and mince the garlic.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the crumbs, shallot, garlic, plant-based beef & mozzarella, seasoning, and red pepper flakes. Mix well.
- Use a melon scooper or spoon to roll the meatballs into balls a little larger than an inch. Heat a large fry pan between medium and medium high heat. Cook the meatballs until a crust forms on all sides, turning often, about 5 minutes. Transfer the meatballs to a baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes.
- To serve the vegan meatballs as appetizers, place a dollop of warmed sauce on a Ritz cracker. Top with a small scoop of plant-based mozzarella. Place a meatball on top and secure with a toothpick. Garnish the serving plate with chopped basil. Best served immediately.
To save this vegan meatball recipe for later, Pin the photo below!
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Ritz crackers are full of trans fats. Just because a food product is plant based doesn’t mean you should eat it without considering the ingredients.
I like to follow the 80/20 diet, as I find it generally to be less restrictive and perfect for long term health. 80% whole food plant based and 20% whatever I want, as long as it contains no animal products! 🙂
I can only find Ritz crackers loose in a box. How many cups crushed should be used?
About 2/3 cup crushed is perfect! Hope you enjoy the recipe!
may i ask if i can skip the frying part & put them straight in the oven? if the answer is yes, how long should i cook them for? thank you so much
Ritz crackers have High fructose corn syrup and trans fats – they’re very unhealthy. There are much ‘cleaner/healthier’ cracker alternatives to spread the word about and to be associated with. Just a thought.
https://www.verywellfit.com/best-and-worst-cracker-choices-calories-in-favorites-4117852#:~:text=Ritz%20Crackers%20are%20made%20with,and%201%20gram%20of%20protein.