These Baked Chicken Apple Meatballs are tender, succulent and bursting with sweet and savory flavor. Baked for ease and convenience, then coated in a rich, silky smooth hard apple cider glaze, these meatballs are perfect for all occasions! From game day and holiday entertaining to snack time and dinner, these meatballs are marvelous and guaranteed to please!
Haaaay there internet, friends!
Happy one day until the weekend!
Whadda ya say we blow the lid off this whole Thursday thing and celebrate the impending weekend early?!
I see you nodding your head yes.
⬆️ This is why we are friends.
And, I can’t think of a better way to celebrate, than with a skillet full of balls of meat.
Meat-ahh-balls!!
Yaaasss!
But not just any ‘ole meatballs!
Sassy, spiced meatballs!
But not just any sassy, spiced meatballs!
Sassy, spiced, HARD APPLE CIDER GLAZED meatballs!!!!
Cue the weekend, friends.
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Baked Chicken Apple Meatballs
AKA THE meatball of the fall season.
Tender, moist, succulent chicken meatballs subtly spiced with warm seasonings and packed with crisp apple flavor.
Generously tossed and lovingly glistening in a sweet, savory, smooth, rich hard apple cider glaze.
Liberally garnished with fresh green onions, earthy thyme, and spicy crushed red peppers.
These meaty bad boys, my gahhh!
These Baked Spiced Hard Apple Cider Meatballs are SO gosh darn good they will rock your face off.
And in your mouth?! It’s like a party in the USA.
(⬆️ I realize the image of both those things happening at the same time is a little bit weird, but let’s just roll with it. Mmmmm’kay?)
The secret to these sassy spiced meatballs?
APPLE BUTTER!
Silky, slightly sweet, cinnamon-y apple butter is ALL UP in this, my friends.
I’m talking, a DOUBLE DOSE of apple butter – both in the meatballs themselves AND in the glaze.
And it’s straight up GLOOOORIOUS.
How long do you cook chicken meatballs in the oven?
How long do you cook chicken meatballs in the oven?The length of time you baked chicken meatballs directly depends on the size of your meatballs and the temperature of your oven.
If you form these chicken apple meatballs into golfball-sized meatballs, they will take approximately 18-22 minutes to bake at 400 degrees F.
You should always bake meatballs until an internal temperature of 165 degrees F registers on an instant-read thermometer and until the juices run clear.
Are chicken meatballs healthy?
Short answer, that depends!
If you are using all dark meat chicken in your meatballs along with tons of breadcrumbs, your chicken meatballs will not be as healthy as a meatball made with lean, white chicken meat and little to no filler.
The chicken apple meatball recipe below allows you to use lean ground chicken, or combination (dark and light meat) ground chicken. As well, grated apple is added to the mix and the recipe only calls for 1/4 cup of panko breadcrumbs. Compared to other chicken meatballs recipes out there, this one is on the healthier side!
Notes, Tips & Tricks for the best Baked Chicken Apple Meatballs recipe:
- I used ground chicken in my meatballs, but feel free to use whatever type of ground meat you would like. Ground turkey or pork would be a great substitution, but ground beef will work too! If you are using ground chicken, I highly recommend you do NOT go with all white meat ground chicken. All ground chicken breasts tend to make the meatballs less juicy and flavorful.
- The recipe for these Apple Cider Meatballs below calls for ½ cup of grated apple, which is roughly ¾ of an apple. I used a Granny Smith apple because the tartness balances the sweetness of the apple butter, but feel free to use any variety that hold up well under heat. Honey Crisp and Pink Lady are both excellent substitutions.
- To keep the meatballs from sticking to your hands when rolling them into balls, lightly oil your hands. This trick works like a charm! Also, make sure you DO NOT roll your meatballs into a tight ball. When meatballs are packed too tight they end up tough and chewy after being cooked.
- Make sure you form your meatballs into roughly the same size. You don’t need to be overly obsessive, just make sure they are around the same size. If you want to be precise, you can use a small ice cream scoop (it’s what I use).
- You can make the meatballs mini sized or jumbo sized if you want, just see the above note (#4) and scale down or up the baking time accordingly.
- You cannot taste the alcohol at all in these meatballs, however if hard apple cider isn’t your thing, feel free to use plain apple cider!
- These apple meatballs taste amazing over mashed potatoes!! So if you are looking to serve these as a main course, do it with some mashed ‘taters!
Sweet, savory and delicious to the max, these Baked Chicken Apple Meatballs are perfect for game day, holiday entertaining, or simply served over mashed potatoes for dinner. Regardless of how you serve them, I pinkie-promise you are going to LOVE them!
Until next week, friends, cheers – magnificent meatballs!
XOXO
Cheyanne
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How to make Baked Chicken Apple Meatballs 👇
Baked Chicken Apple Meatballs
Ingredients
Meatballs:
- 1 pound Ground Chicken or ground pork, turkey, or beef*
- ¾ Cup Panko Breadcrumbs
- 2 cloves Garlic – minced
- 2 Scallions – finely chopped
- ½ Cup Granny Smith Apple * – peeled & grated (about ¾ of an apple)
- 1 Large Egg – whisked
- ¼ Cup Apple Butter
- ¾ tsp Allspice
- 1 tsp Fresh Thyme Leaves – chopped
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt plus more to taste
Glaze:
- ¾ Cup Hard Apple Cider
- ½ Cup Apple Butter
- 1 TBS Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1/8 tsp Cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp Ground Ginger
- 2 tsp Dijon Mustard
- 1 sprig Thyme
- Pinch Cayenne
Optional for Garnish : Sliced Green Onions, Thyme, Crushed Red Pepper Flakes, Chopped Pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or foil for easy clean up.
- Make the meatballs: In a large bowl combine all the ingredients for the meatballs. Use your hands or a rubber spatula to gently mix until just combined. Do NOT overmix.
- Form the meatballs: Using wet hands to prevent sticking, roll the mixture into golf ball-sized meatballs (about 2 tablespoons of the mixture for each). If the mixture is too wet, add 1 tablespoon of panko, at a time, to the mix until it is easier to shape. Transfer meatballs to prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until lightly browned and meatballs are cooked through.
- MEANWHILE, make the glaze: In a large skillet combine all the sauce ingredients. Season with ½ teaspoon salt and pinch of pepper. Whisk to combine. Place the skillet over medium heat and bring to a gentle simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, whisking occasionally. for 6-8 minutes, or until sauce is slightly thickened. Reduce heat to low and add the meatballs. Gently toss to thoroughly coat the meatballs.
- To serve: Transfer the glazed meatballs to a serving dish and top with optional garnishes. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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Wow thank you for the great recipe! They’re so fragrant, sweet and oh so tender and juicy! They remind me of the Swedish meatballs my mom always makes for Chriatmas — but perfectly spiced for the fall season. I used 85% lean ground turkey and half pumpkin butter because I ran out of apple butter and they were amazing! I was looking for traditional turkey dinner alternatives for Friendsgivng and can’t wait for everyone to try them — they are going to be a hit!
Thank you for a fabulous recipe!! We were searching for recipes that featured products from an apple orchard where we were having a private cocktail event This recipe was perfect!!
We used the orchard apples, hard cider and apple butter and made sure to use all fresh herbs. For the meat we ground boneless skinless chicken thighs. A tablespoon ball scoop was the right appetizer size. We made them the day before and reheated them in a roaster pan two hours before setting them out in the chafing pans. We served 150 people with rave reviews! Thanks for a keeper!
Hi Rebecca,
I’m absolutely thrilled you loved this recipe! 150 people is quite a crowd and I’m so very happy to hear everyone enjoyed the meatballs!! Thank you for coming back and letting me know how it went over! You’ve made my day! Cheers!
Oh good lord…these sound delicious. I don’t have much experience cooking with apple butter. Actually no experience. But these sound so delicious I’m going to have buy a jar. I just love this so much! I eat a protein heavy diet during the week, and I think these would be a perfect addition to my rotation!
How did these sneak by me? Looks like I have some catching up to do!! These sound so perfect for our rainy, chilly weather. I love the savory sweet combo and hard cider is amazing!! Take care.
Perfect to serve at a halloween party…they sound great!
I can’t tell you how much I love cooking with hard apple cider so these meat-ah-balls are calling my name! They look so tender and that sauce is killing me softly! Happy almost weekend!
Love this skillet full of balls of meat 🙂 So perfect with the apple flavours!
I am just loving these fall meatballs. I just bought hard cider and apple butter because they are my two favorite fall items. Now you made this genius recipe and I am drooling!
these look so good! thanks for the recipe
Hard apple cider glaze???? Um yes please!! I haven’t had meatballs in um, ages. I must fix that asap!!
I’ve been on a meatball tear lately! So I need to add these to the rotation – I’m in a rut! Loving the hard apple cider in these – I bet it makes the flavor and texture amazing!
Yeeeessss, happy almost weekend, Chey! (And for some lucky people, happy extended weekend because Canada is celebrating Thanksgiving this Monday. Also, happy short Friday for me). Sorry. This is your blog, and I’ve been bragging about my life. I’m pretty certain my LONG weekend won’t upset you, right? Besides, you got to enjoy these amazing succulent meatballs, so I’m not sure who’s luckier (Probably, still me cause I can make these meatballs during my very long weekend) 🙂 This truly looks fabulous. Last year I was experimenting with apple cider in few recipes, so probably I should continue this fall as well. Happy (Not long, just an average. But better than nothing) weekend, Chey! 🙂
Chey!! you had me at hard apple cider!! and then glazed meatballs… oh my! I could eat this all weekend long, week days too! for that matter!! Have a great weekend, Chey!
Yaaaaaas to starting weekends early and to these glorious meatballs! Apple butter IN the meatballs? You’re a genius, nothing but. This is fall food at its finest and so perfect for football watching I can’t even take it. Have a great weekend, Chey!
OMG! I cannot handle the creativity surrounding these meatballs! You know how I feel about them without even uttering a word, right? But I will anyway – these are INCREDIBLE! Perfect for entertaining, my friend!! Pinned! xo
Great minds Chey!! These meatballs look amazing! So nice and juicy. And you know I’m totally loving all that apple flavor. I know Tom will just love these. Perfect for fall entertaining! Happy almost the weekend! XO
Woo hoo to the almost weekend! And woo hoo to these delicious balls of meat 😉 I love anything in a skillet and meatballs are one of the best comfort foods out there. Love this fall spin and because you used chicken that means they are a little lighter and I can eat more, right 😉 ? Hand me one of those skewers, will ya, so I can dig into this deliciousness! Have a lovely weekend, sweets! XOXO
YES to starting the weekend early! Especially if it involves one of your cocktails and this delicious meatballs! I’m absolutely loving the flavor, Cheyanne! Hard apple cider…so creative! I just want to dive right into that skillet for breakfast. I love both the sweet and savory combo…just what our fall dinners need! Pinned! Hope you have a wonderful weekend!
I adore meatballs and always love trying new flavors and this one is perfect for fall! Such a genius idea to use apple butter (I’m a tad obsessed with the stuff) AND the hard apple cider? Oh wow, so much flavor in these babies! I can see them being a hit at parties but I also want them for dinner over some mashed potatoes! Pinned! Have a great weekend, my friend! XO
Must make this for my husband as he is a huge fan of all sorts of meatballs. I love the idea of using apple butter in the. So juicy and delicious!