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Bread-Free Stuffing Balls
Yield
14 to 15 balls
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
My recipe tester Nicole likes to call these “bread-free stuffing balls,” and I think I would have to agree! These festive bites have all the flavours of traditional stuffing, but they’re protein-packed, bite-sized, and gluten-free as well. This is a new and improved version of my popular Lentil Mushroom Walnut Balls recipe. I've streamlined the procedure and provided a make-ahead version in the Tips below. This recipe moves quickly using quite a few components, so my advice is to gather all of the ingredients and do as much prep as you can before you begin. If you aren't a cranberry sauce fan, my Vegan Mushroom Gravy is a nice option too!
Ingredients
For the Bread-Free Stuffing Balls:
- 1 tablespoon (15 mL) extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 (8-ounce/225 g) package cremini mushrooms*
- 3 large garlic cloves, minced
- 2 cups (50 g) stemmed kale leaves
- 1/2 cup (50 g) gluten-free rolled oats
- 1 (14-ounce/398 mL) can lentils, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup (100 g) walnut halves**
- 1 teaspoon (5 mL) dried thyme (or 2 teaspoons fresh)
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary (or 1/2 teaspoon fresh, minced)
- 1/3 cup (40 g) dried cranberries, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon (15 mL) ground flax
- 2 tablespoons (30 mL) water
- 2 1/2 teaspoons (12.5 mL) sherry vinegar
- 3/4 to 1 teaspoon fine sea salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
For the Cranberry-Pear Sauce:
- 2 cups (210 g) fresh or frozen cranberries
- 1 large (230 g) ripe pear, peeled and finely chopped
- 1/2 cup (125 mL) pure maple syrup
- Small pinch fine sea salt
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Add the oil to a large pot and turn heat to medium. Finely chop the mushrooms until they’re roughly the size of peas. Add chopped mushrooms to the pot along with minced garlic and a pinch of salt. Stir until combined. Sauté for about 6 to 8 minutes, until the water from the mushrooms cooks off, reducing heat to low if necessary to prevent burning.
- Meanwhile, tear the kale into large pieces and place into a food processor. Pulse (do not process) the kale until finely chopped (pieces roughly the size of almonds), being careful not to overprocess it. Remove and place into a bowl for later.
- To the processor (no need to clean it out!), add the rolled oats. Process the oats until they’re finely chopped and resemble coarse flour, about 30 seconds.
- Add the drained lentils and walnuts to the processor bowl with the oat flour. Pulse the mixture, stopping to check on it every few pulses, until it’s coarsely chopped. Be sure not to overprocess it into a paste as you still want a lot of texture and crunchy walnut pieces. Set aside.
- To the pot with the mushrooms and garlic, add the herbs and sauté for 30 seconds until fragrant. Stir in the kale and chopped dried cranberries, then turn off the heat.
- Stir the flax and water together in a small cup (no need to let it sit).
- Now add all of the food processor contents, vinegar, and flax mixture to the pot. Stir until thoroughly combined. The dough should be heavy and dense. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- With lightly wet hands, shape and roll about 14 to 15 balls, roughly 3 to 4 tablespoons of dough each. Place them on the prepared baking sheet about two inches apart.
- Bake for 22 to 24 minutes, until golden on the bottom and firm to touch. Remove and let cool for 5 minutes.
- While the Bread-Free Stuffing Balls are baking, make the Cranberry-Pear Sauce. Add the cranberries, pear, maple syrup, and salt to a medium pot. Bring to a low boil over high heat and then reduce to medium. Simmer uncovered for 10 to 20 minutes until thickened. Use a potato masher to mash up the pear near the end of cooking, if desired.
- Leftover balls can be refrigerated in an airtight container for a few days. To reheat, add oil to a skillet and fry over medium heat, tossing occasionally, until heated through.
Tip:
* You can save a tiny bit of chopping time by buying sliced mushrooms instead of whole. You’ll still need to dice them up finely, but it’ll go a little faster with the first chop already done for you!
** You can toast the walnuts beforehand, but this step is optional. Preheat the oven to 325°F (165°C) and toast the walnuts on a baking sheet for 9 to 12 minutes, until lightly crisp and fragrant.
MAKE-AHEAD OPTIONS: You can store the uncooked balls in the fridge (tightly wrapped up on a plate) for up to 36 hours before baking so there's less fuss the day of a big meal. The uncooked balls can also be frozen in a freezer-safe zip bag for 1 to 2 weeks. To bake, simply pop the frozen balls on a prepared baking sheet and bake for 30 to 32 minutes (they need roughly 7 to 9 minutes more bake time when baking from frozen). The Cranberry-Pear Sauce can also be made 1 to 2 weeks in advance and frozen until ready to use.
I made these today and really enjoyed them! They’re super-easy – I had pre-cooked lentils ready to go (used 1.5 cups). I just used the food processor to chop the mushrooms. I didn’t have cranberries, so used raisins and actually just added them to the food processor at same time as the lentils and walnuts to chop them. These came together super-well – sometimes it’s difficult to get burgers/meatballs to stick together, but these were perfect, and delicious. Thank you!
Hey Laura, Oh I’m so glad you made them and enjoyed them! Thanks for the great review. I love your extra time-saving hacks too. I’ll be adding in the dried cranberries in that step next time!
I also tried chopping the mushrooms in the food processor as a first step (pulsing), but I found my machine chopped the mushrooms too small (which made the balls have less texture) and it was quite inconsistent in terms of size. That could just be my machine though. :)
Hi Angela,I just saw your comment. Thanks for responding! Yes, pulsing the mushrooms in the food processor made them smaller than the “pea-size” in your instructions and I did need to scrape down the bowl a few times (I used a 7-cup KitchenAid food processor; I think my larger food processor would have just made the mushrooms fly around and then stick to the sides of the bowl). I tried the recipe again, chopping the mushrooms by hand and will agree that the finished balls do have more texture when the mushrooms are chopped a bit larger than what was possible for me in the food processor. Either way, this is a great recipe and I think my laziness will win out and I’ll stick with the “everything in the food processor” method. Thank you again!
Hey Laura, Thanks so much for your reply! I totally had the same experience with the processor vs. hand-chopping methods. It’s nice to have two options, anyway!
I’m wondering if you have an alternative for oats, I am Celiac and unfortunately one of the 10% that reacts even to GF labeled oats. Thanks
I also want to report on how great this recipe is. Made the balls last weekend (not that we celebrate Thanksgiving in my country, but they just sounded so appealing:). I followed the recipe exactly, only used my Vitamix instead of food processor which I do not own. The result was more than satisfying and next week I will be definitely preparing the balls for my family lunch as I believe they will like them as well. Many thanks for the recipe.
Hi Tereza, Thank you so much for your feedback! I’m so happy you love them so much. It’s so great to know that it worked in the Vitamix too. It just occurred to me that you can “pulse” the on/off button with a Vitamix!
Made these for Friday dinner tonight… It was absolutely delicious and wonderful. It felt like turkey dinner without turkey. My family loved it! Served it with boiled rainbow potatoes and brussel sprouts -very simple, so so so good! Thank you for this recipe.
This makes me so happy to hear, Yulia! Thanks for trying them out.
loved this balls.
I made these on Friday and used the food processor to chop the mushrooms, too, to save time. I don’t like dried cranberries, so I chopped frozen whole cranberries (again, in the food processor!) and it was a very easy dinner. I was too lazy to make the sauce, but I had some applesauce on hand and used that! Thanks for an easy, delicious, Christmasy dinner!
Hey Kay, Oh I love your applesauce idea. Good call. I’m so glad these were a hit! Thanks for letting us know.
Lingonberry preserves would also be excellent here. I plan on adding allspice and nutmeg, just like my grandmother used to add to her Swedish meatballs. (Walnut farmer here, so I’m always looking out for ways to use up the gallon bags of walnut meats I’ve got in the freezer this time of year.)
Hi Kristina, Oh that sounds so good. I’ll have to try this next time. Enjoy those walnuts!
These are so delicious ! I made them for Thanksgiving and they will be served at Christmas. You rock!
Hey Cindy, I’m so happy you love these as much as I do. Merry Christmas!
These look SO good! I’ll definitely need to give them a try for the holidays ♥
I’ve been making these since the original recipe was posted a few years back! I also chop the mushrooms in my food processor (pulse in two batches) – works beautifully. Today I made a double batch and stashed them in my freezer (unbaked). Looking forward to serve them for Christmas celebrations….with plenty leftover for workday lunches too :) Thanks for a winning recipe!
Hey ilona, So glad you tried the new version out! I’ll be making these for our Christmas dinner too. Have a great Christmas!
Recipe looks great! Two questions, I can’t eat nuts, can I replace it w oatmeal. Secondly, what other sauce can u use rather than suggested or applesauce, can u use a gravy? Going to try for Christmas!
I just saw yr recommendation on using yr gravy. Great. Just wondering about the walnut/oatmeal substitution.
Hey Frances, I would probably recommend using finely chopped pepita seeds instead of the nuts. I fear that the oats would absorb too much moisture, and then you wouldn’t have that nice crunch from the nuts too.
Thanks for this recipe! I can’t wait to try it. Quick question – my husband has a walnut allergy. Any recommendations for replacing the walnuts?
Happy holidays! Joyeuses fêtes!
Hey Beth, Maybe chopped pecans or pepita seeds? I think both of those would be fine. I’d probably opt for pecans!
Happy holidays to you and your family!
Delicious! A friend and I finished them in nearly one sitting!
haha oh we’ve been there! They are addictive, don’t you think?! So happy you enjoyed them.
These look perfect for holiday cooking! I haven’t yet found a go to recipe for these occasions. My only problem is that I’m not a huge mushroom fan. Is there anything that could be substituted here?
Hi Heather, Thank you! They are quite festive for sure. I haven’t tried anything aside from mushrooms yet so I’m not entirely sure, but maybe finely grated carrot?
Made these for Friday dinner tonight… It was absolutely delicious and wonderful…
My friend brought these for Easter and they were amazing. I am vegan and gluten free and wanted to feel like I was celebrating. Everyone loved them – and I used my leftovers in a salad the next day.
That’s so sweet of your friend to make these…I’m so glad they were a hit! Good call on adding leftovers to salads. I like adding them to my flax wraps too.
YUM! I plan to make this tonight. I don’t have any sherry vinegar; would apple cider vinegar work, or what would you suggest? Thank you! :)
Hey Caroline, I haven’t tried it with another vinegar so I can’t say for sure, but I think ACV might be lovely! I would add just a tiny bit at a time and taste test.
Yummy!!
Hi Angela,
Do you think it would work to bake this in a pan instead of in ball form?
Thank you!
Leslie
Oh good question! I haven’t tried it, but that’s such a great idea. I would probably follow similar heat and cook times as my lentil walnut loaf, but just start checking it earlier in case it cooks faster. If you try anything please let me know how it goes!
What can I substitute for the oil? Making these for Thanksgiving in a couple of days, normally would use applesauce in a recipe but thinking that would not work here.
Thanks in advance!
You can water saute the veggies instead of using oil, or use a little veg broth; that’s what I have done and works great!
I am making this meal for Thanksgiving. Can’t wait! Quick q…I don’t have sherry vinegar. Will apple cider vinegar work? Thanks!!
Hi Carin, I haven’t tried it before but it could…I may be more inclined to try white wine vinegar, but it’s up to your personal preferences! :) I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Thank you so much. It worked well. And the meal was a HUGE hit with my entire family today for Thanksgiving! Thank you for keeping us so well fed ?. So grateful for you!
Awww I’m so grateful for you Carin! I’m thrilled these were a hit! I am making them this weekend and can’t wait. Hope you had a fantastic Thanksgiving!