Cheesy Meatball Skillet Dip

Cheesy Meatball Skillet Dip is a quick appetizer that your guests will love.  Tender meatballs, with a light tomato sauce with lots of melty cheeses for complete comfort food.

Cheesy Meatball Skillet Dip is an appetizer that you can make after a long day of work and still have plenty of time to be ready for when company comes over for happy hour or just for an evening of game night games.  

Its comfort food at its best, melty cheese, with even more cheese in juicy light meatballs.  All mixed with a light tomato sauce.

NEED MORE HOT CHEESY DIPS? My Pepperoni Pizza dip and Artichoke feta dip are some of my most popular melty cheese dips!

Points of interest on the Cheesy Meatball Skillet Dip:

• The trick to the success of this dip is in the meatballs.  To have success with meatballs you only need follow a few steps:
  1. Use meat with a little more fat.  (90/10 meat will be much more dried out than 80/20). In my recipe I mix both pork and beef so there is ample fat, but it doesn’t taste greasy at all.
  2. Mix the meatballs with your hands and don’t overpack them.  The goal is to hold them together but not make them packed so tight that they aren’t too tough.
  3. Make sure to make a test meatball.  My recipe includes seasoning that should work, but make a test meatball and taste it and adjust your seasonings accordingly!
• Need a time saver?  I give you a recipe to make your own tomato sauce, but I have been known on occasion to use our favorite spaghetti sauce to make this dip.  (I have an Italian friend who is gasping now that I would suggest store-bought. )But I get it, there are times when you just need your dip ready to serve in time and you don’t always have the time to make your own! Our personal favorite at the moment is Classico Tomato Basil Sauce!
• You can partially make this dish ahead.  Make the meatballs, cook the meatballs in the oven and hold off on sprinkling the cheese.  You store the recipe up until this point in the fridge and then just reheat and put the cheese on in the last baking.  

  

I love meatballs, and have several other meatball recipes that you may enjoy for an appetizer.  My number one Meatball recipe is from a review I did from my friend Char from Wok and Skillet’s cookbook.  Her recipe for Chinese Pork Meatballs is so so good!  Check out my Bacon Wrapped Blue Cheese Meatballs, The IKEA copycat Swedish Meatballs or for a healthier option try these Buffalo Chicken Meatballs!  If those aren’t enough meatballs for you, I also have a meatball round-up with a lot more recipes here! 

Yield: 8 appetizer portions

Cheesy Meatball Skillet Dip

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Cheesy Meatball Skillet Dip is a quick appetizer that your guests will love.  Tender meatballs, with a light tomato sauce with lots of melty cheeses for complete comfort food.

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Ingredients

Cheesy Meatballs

• 1. lbs Ground Beef, I prefer 85/15
• .5 pound ground pork
• 1/4 cup Heavy Cream
• 1 egg , beaten
• 1.5 teaspoons Lawry's seasoned salt
• 1 tablespoon Oregano
• 1/2 cup Panko Bread crumbs
• 6 ounces Gouda Cheese , cut into 1/8" cubes

Tomato Sauce

• 28 ounces tomatoes , (fresh or canned)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 ounces onions, minced
• 1 tablespoon italian seasoning
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Cheesy Topping

• 2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded

Instructions

Meatballs

1. Preheat oven to 350°
2. Using your hands mix together beef, pork, heavy cream, beaten egg, oregano, and panko bread crumbs.
3. Then sprinkle gouda cheese cubes over the top and mix gently.  Use a lighter hand to blend evenly.  
4. You can test cook one meatball ahead of time here to make sure it is seasoned correctly.  Adjust seasonings as needed.
5. Form meat into bite sized balls (about 1inch in diameter), packing them gently but enough to hold them in a ball shape.
6. Place on plate and place in fridge to chill to set shape while you make the tomato sauce.
7. Once meatballs are chilled, place meatballs on a roasting pan and cook them for about 15 minutes.  Then set aside until sauce is ready.

Tomato Sauce

1. In a saute pan heat to medium high. Add olive oil and sauce minced onion until translucent.  (about 4 minutes). Add Garlic and saute for 2 more minutes.
2. Add tomatoes and Italian seasoning and simmer on medium for 15 minutes.  As tomatoes break down, mash them to make the sauce thinner.  (alternatively you can use an immersion blender to puree the sauce.) 
3. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Meatball dip

1. Once sauce is done, place meatballs in an ovenproof skillet/serving dish (one that you will serve from) Then pour hot sauce over the top.  Cook in oven for 10 minutes.
2. Remove from the oven, raise the oven temp to 400°.  Sprinkle cheese over the top of the meatballs.  Cook for about 10 more minutes, watching carefully so the cheese does not burn.  Bake until cheese is bubbly and golden brown.
3. Serve with herb toasts or garlic bread immediately.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

8

Serving Size:

8 appetizer portions
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 461Saturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 135mgSodium: 1009mgCarbohydrates: 13gFiber: 2gSugar: 6gProtein: 30g

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