So I was trying to figure out how to best use up the last of my Jalapeno Jelly from the batch I made last week, when it hit me – put it in some meatballs! I added a little cheese and the jelly to some ground turkey and holy smokes was it tasty! Add some cheese covered cauliflower and a scrumptious meal was born – Jalapeno Turkey Meatballs w/ Cheesy Cauliflower!

Ground Turkey is so perfect for baked meatballs. It holds together great and cooks evenly. Adding the jelly worked out even better than I had hoped – I had never tried to add a jelly to a ground meat before – but I will definitely be doing it again – probably for a meatloaf and some burgers. Going to making a new kind of jelly this week – stay tuned!
The Cheesy Cauliflower is such a tasty side dish – my son asked if I could make that instead of fries with the next burger! And it fits in with the Keto-esque thing we are doing at my house. It really couldn’t be simpler to make too. I think I will be trying it with different cheeses to see what kinds of variety I can get.
Aioli sounds so fancy – really it’s a just a dipping sauce like ranch or ketchup, with a few more ingredients. This Garlic Aioli came out very nice and was easy to put together with things I always have on hand. It balanced the spiciness of the meatballs well and also tasted great with the cauliflower – it was a win/win!
Now Let’s Get Cookin’!
Jalapeno Turkey Meatballs w/ Cheesy Cauliflower
Ingredients
For the Meatballs
- 2 lb Ground Turkey
- ½ cup Jalapeno Jelly see below for recipe
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Pepper
- 1 cup Cheddar Cheese finely shredded
For the Cauliflower
- 4 cup Cauliflower flowerets
- 2 cups Cheddar Cheese shredded
- 1 tbsp Avocado Oil
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Pepper
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
- 2 Scallions chopped
For the Garlic Dip
- 1 cup Avocado Mayo
- ¼ cup Dijon Mustard
- 3 Garlic Cloves minced
- 1 tbsp Lemon Juice
- ¼ tsp Cayenne
- 1 tsp Parsley
Instructions
- Prepare all of the ingredients. Preheat oven to 400 deg.
- In a 13×9 baking dish, add cauliflower, oil, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Toss to coat. Top with cheese and scallions. Cover with foil and place in oven for 30 minutes.
- In a bowl, combine ingredients for meatballs. Form into 1 inch balls and line out on parchment covered baking sheet. Add to oven and cook for 20 minutes.
- In a small bowl, combine ingredients for garlic dip. Place in refrigerator until reedy to serve.
Jalapeno Jelly
Equipment
- 3 Pint Sized Canning Jars with lids and rings
Ingredients
- 5 Jalapenos finely diced
- 1 Red Bell Pepper finely diced
- 1 Green Bell Pepper finely diced
- 4 cups Sugar
- 1½ cup White Vinegar
- 2½ oz Pectin
Instructions
- Prepare all of the ingredients.
- In a large pot over medium high heat, combine all of the ingredients. Bring to a boil and let boil for 5 minutes. Remove pot from heat.
- Ladle jelly into each jar leaving ¼ inch head space. Place lid on jar and screw on ring to seal. Let stand on counter for 30 minutes then place in refrigerator for at least 3½ hours.
- Will keep for 4 weeks unopened in refrigerator, 1 week once opened.
Estelle Forrest self-published this cookbook after a lot of playing around in the kitchen. You can purchase your own copy here:
AVAILABLE IN PRINT OR KINDLE eBOOK VERSIONS
Don’t miss new recipes from Homemade on a Weeknight – subscribe and get an email with every new post!
Yeah!! This looks and sounds amazing! What a great group of flavors. Thanks for sharing at the What’s for Dinner party. Have an awesome week.
Anything with jalapenos automatically catches my attention. 💙 LOL! These look amazing! Thanks so much sharing your recipe!
Jalapeno is a brilliant match to turkey and cheesy cauliflower is always a treat!
Thank you for bringing this to Fiesta Friday 🙂
This is wonderful and inventive – Jalapeño and cauliflower – I am putting this one in my file for later!