Juicy, flavorful, cheese-stuffed balls of yum decorated and customized to your taste to create the perfect platter of savory goodness mimicking your favorite cheeseburger flavors! Create whichever combinations of cheese and toppings you like and then put out your favorite dips and condiments to make a display of appetizers that look as delectable as they taste!
I’ve been dreaming of these lovelies for some time now and the day I made them all come into existence was a happy one, indeed. For me, because they turned out better than I had imagined. For my sweet man, because he was thrilled to taste and test and testify to the amazingness of each! Perfect for your Super Bowl party along with any of the ideas in my Super Bowl post!
I chose to make these three as pictured:
- Bleu Cheese stuffed meatballs adorned with sautéed mushrooms and onions
- Classic American cheese with all the fixings we love on a classic burger
- Cheddar cheese stuffed meatballs crowned with a spicy pickled jalapeno
You can mix and match cheeses and condiments to create whatever cheeseburger flavors you love! Bacon plus BBQ sauce would be spectacular! Serve with standard condiments, or whip up a dressing to make it like your favorite burger joint (thousand island like a Big Mac or campfire sauce like Red Robin). Steak sauce would be another delicious dip! One thing is for sure, your platter will get eaten first and be gone in minutes!
Whatever cheeses you choose, season each pound of meat with the following and mix just to combine:
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp. onion powder
- 3 T. panko bread crumbs
- 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp. pepper
- 1 beaten egg
Plan to get around 16 meatballs per 1 pound of burger. I used a small rectangular glass dish and patted the meat mixture into a layer and then used a knife to divide it in half again and again until I had 16 equal pieces.
Now, to stuff them with cheese! I used a block of both cheddar and bleu cheese and cut off chunks about 1/4″ x 1/4″. I set the squares onto one of the pieces of burger that I gently shaped into a flat circle. Form the meat up around the chunk of cheese and set it aside.
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Then, heat a heavy skillet for several minutes — a large cast iron is perfect for this — and add in 1 T. olive oil. Add the meatballs to the hot skillet and brown them by letting them sit on each side until you create a texture all around each meatball. Try not to exceed 5 minutes at this stage as the rest of the cooking will happen when you then put the skillet into the preheated oven and let it cook until the inside reads at least 160 on a meat thermometer — 10-15 minutes removing as soon as they read the correct temperature so they don’t dry out!
Remove them from the oven and get ready to assemble! Use a long toothpick or short skewer, small appetizer forks, or whatever you have pile the toppings! I draped the American cheese over the top for my classic cheeseburger meatballs rather than attempting to stuff them as seen in the picture. For the Bleu cheese stuffed meatballs, I cut my onions and mushrooms into large chunks and sautéed them in some butter while the meatballs cooked. Once they were soft, I sprinkled them with salt and pepper and they were ready to assemble!
Be creative and tell me what you made! But most of all, enjoy the fun of our favorite new appetizer!
- Per 1 lb. of ground beef (16 meatballs)
- ½ tsp. garlic powder
- ½ tsp. onion powder
- ½ tsp. kosher salt
- ½ tsp. pepper
- 1 egg
- 3 T. panko bread crumbs
- Cheeses of your choice -- bleu, cheddar, Swiss, American
- burger toppings -- lettuce, tomato, onions, jalapeños, mushrooms
- Condiments -- ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, BBQ sauce, steak sauce, etc.
- Divide meat into 16 equal pieces (see post for the how-to).
- Cut chunks of cheese into about ¼" x ¼" squares.
- Set the squares onto one of the pieces of burger gently shaped into a flat circle.
- Form the meat up around the chunk of cheese and set it aside.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Heat a heavy skillet for several minutes -- a large cast iron is perfect for this -- and add in 1 T. olive oil.
- Add the meatballs to the hot skillet and brown them by letting them sit on each side until you create a texture all around each meatball. Try not to exceed 5 minutes at this stage as the rest of the cooking will happen when you then put the skillet into the preheated oven and let it cook until the inside reads at least 160 on a meat thermometer. This should take 10-15 minutes, but go by temp.
- Remove them from the oven and get ready to assemble!
- Use a long toothpick or short skewer, small appetizer forks, or whatever you have pile the toppings!
- For the Bleu cheese stuffed meatballs, I cut my onions and mushrooms into large chunks and sautéed them in some butter while the meatballs cooked. Once they were soft, I sprinkled them with salt and pepper and they were ready to assemble!
Leave a Reply