• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • Cook
    • Breakfast and Brunch
    • Easy Weeknight
    • Weekend Feasting
  • Drink
    • Cocktails
    • Wine
    • No Booze Drinks
  • Party
    • Fancy Sweets
    • Party Food

Slow The Cook Down logo

menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • Cook
    • Easy Weeknight
    • Weekend Feasting
    • Breakfast and Brunch
  • Party
    • Party Food
    • Fancy Sweets
  • Drink
    • Cocktails
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • ×

    Home » Uncategorized

    Published: May 30, 2016 · Modified: Dec 15, 2017 by Slow The Cook Down

    Meatball Cupcakes - The Perfect Party Food

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
    The meatball cupcakes will be the show stopper at your next dinner party! These melt in the middle meatballs are packed full of flavour, nestled in a filo pastry case and topped with a rich tomato sauce. Perfect finger food!

    What's better than a meatball pasta, I hear you ask?  How about a bite size meatball with a gooey a cheese filling, nestled in a cheesy filo casing and topped with a rich tomato sauce? These meatball cupcakes will be the star of your next party!

    These bite size little beauties are exactly what party food should be, they pack flavour and one is not enough!  Enjoy with some cold beers and friends, or, do as I do and just nibble them throughout a Sunday afternoon!

    IMG_3189

    My meatball cupcakes recipe is packed full of flavour, the meat is well seasoned and when you take a bite, the melted cheese and rich tomato sauce create full impact.

    The sauce is really concentrated and you don't need to use much to top them, any left over can be stored in the fridge and stirred into some pasta, or spread onto a pizza base for an easy week night dinner.

    Go forth meatball fans! And if you are looking for more party food ideas, check out my Courgette Fritters or Crispy Chicken Satay!

     

    The meatball cupcakes will be the show stopper at your next dinner party! These melt in the middle meatballs are packed full of flavour, nestled in a filo pastry case and topped with a rich tomato sauce. Perfect finger food!

    Meatball Cupcakes

    The meatball cupcakes will be the show stopper at your next dinner party! These melt in the middle meatballs are packed full of flavour, nestled in a filo pastry case and topped with a rich tomato sauce. Perfect finger food!
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Appetizer, party food
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 20 minutes
    Cook Time: 50 minutes
    Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
    Servings: 12 meatball cupcakes
    Calories: 148kcal
    Author: Slow The Cook Down

    Ingredients

    For the meatballs

    • 8.8 ounces ground beef (250g)
    • 1 tbsp salt
    • 1 tbsp black pepper
    • 1 tsp dried Italian herbs
    • 1 egg
    • 5 leaves of fresh sage (finely chopped)
    • 2.6 ounces breadcrumbs (75g)
    • 1 onion - finely sliced and gently fried
    • 2.6 ounces mozzarella (cut into 1cm cubes)(75g)

    For the tomato sauce

    • 2 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
    • ½ red chilli (finely chopped)
    • 17.6 ounces ripe plum tomatoes (roughly chopped) (500g)
    • 1 red pepper (roughly chopped)
    • 1 tbsp salt
    • 2 tbsp sugar
    • 2 tbsp tomato puree
    • 2.1 pints litre chicken stock (1 litre)
    • 1.7 ounces red wine vinegar (50ml)
    • juice of 1 lemon
    • 1 tbsp dried bay leaves

    For the pastry cases

    • 4 sheets of ready made filo pastry
    • handful of strong grated cheddar
    • 1 beaten egg

    Instructions

    • Place all of the meatball ingredients into a large bowl (apart from the mozzarella) and combine together using your hands. Place in the fridge whilst you prep the tomato sauce.
    • In a large pan, heat a glug of oil over a medium heat and put in the garlic and chilli.  Let them cook for a couple of minutes until they start to soften.  Then add in the rest of the ingredients for the sauce.  Turn the heat up to medium high until the sauce starts to boil.  Turn it down slightly so that the sauce is on a steady simmer. Leave to simmer for around 30mins until it has reduced.
    • Take the meatball mixture out of the fridge.  Grab a golf ball size piece of meat and flatten it in your hand.  Pop a cube of mozzarella in the middle and work the meat up and around the cheese until it is covered. Repeat until you have 12 little meatballs. and pop them back in the fridge.
    • Pre heat the oven to 200º.
    • Lightly oil a muffin tin. Take a sheet of filo pastry and brush with a little beaten egg.  Sprinkle over a little grated cheese (don't be tempted to over do the cheese!) and place another layer of filo on top and press down.  Cut the filo into squares, large enough to fit into the individual muffin moulds in your tray. Place the shares into the moulds making sure they are pressed in.  You can use a circular cookie cutter to ensure more even pastry cases, but I quite like the hotch potch nature of the squares!  Pop in the oven for 10minutes and leave to one side once cooked.
    • Line a tray with silver foil and place the meatballs in the oven for 20mins.
    • Back to the sauce!  By this time most of the liquid will have evaporated. Using a hand blender, brake down any large bits of tomato and pepper so that you are left with a smooth sauce.  You want a really thick sauce, so keep cooking it until very little liquid is left.
    • Now to plate them up! In each filo case, add a meatball, make sure it is well pushed in, not resting on the top! Then add a small spoonful of the tomato sauce.  You really don't need much as it is so concentrated.

    Notes

    You may have some left over tomato sauce, if you do, pop in a sealed container in the fridge and save to stir into pasta or use as a pizza base.
    If you are short on time, you can use a jarred sauce.
    Nutritional values are based on one of twelve meatball cupcakes.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 148kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 49mg | Sodium: 1294mg | Potassium: 253mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 795IU | Vitamin C: 27mg | Calcium: 77mg | Iron: 1.4mg
    Tried this recipe? Pin it today!Mention @SlowTheCookDown or tag #SlowTheCookDown!

    The meatball cupcakes will be the show stopper at your next dinner party! These melt in the middle meatballs are packed full of flavour, nestled in a filo pastry case and topped with a rich tomato sauce. Perfect finger food!

     

     

     

    « Layered Eton Mess with Summer Fruits
    Fried Bread English Breakfast Sandwich »
    2474 shares
    • Share
    • Tweet
    • Yummly
    • Flipboard
    Banner showing publications Slow The Cook Down has been featured in

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Shana Sutton says

      February 20, 2021 at 12:13 am

      OMG!! This is soo clever! I love it! Totally gonna make this the next chance I get!

      Reply
      • Slow The Cook Down says

        February 20, 2021 at 3:08 pm

        Enjoy! It's one of my faves 🙂

        Reply
    2. Marlee says

      July 18, 2018 at 10:40 pm

      5 stars
      This is such a fun appetizer idea! Wontons can be so crispy!!!

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    A photo of Betty Davies

    Slow The Cook Down is all about taking life down a notch - stopping to enjoy the smell from the roast chicken you just pulled from the oven. Here, there's no reason to hurry or stress; dinner will get done, and it will be delicious! Pour a glass of wine and settle in to try something new.

    More about me →

    Follow Us

    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • Instagram

    Featured Recipes

    • Overhead shot of poached fish in a skillet with fresh cilantro garnish
      Poached Cod in Coconut Milk
    • Bison meatballs in a skillet with tomato sauce
      Bison Meatballs
    • Two air fryer tuna steaks garnished with sesame seed and chives.
      Air Fryer Tuna Steaks
    • Two mugs of tea on a wooden chopping board
      Ginger Turmeric Lemon Tea
    • Slow roasted chicken on top of lemon and fresh herbs
      Slow Roasted Chicken with Lemon, Herbs and Garlic
    • Overhead shot of the beef and tomato soup in a dutch oven and some served into a bowl.
      Ground Beef and Tomato Soup

    Get Side Dish Recipes

    Logo for website 'Bite On The Side'

    Featured In

    Publications where Slow The Cook Down has been featured

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy & Disclaimer
    • About Betty

    Keep in Touch

    • Sign up for updates

    Contact

    • Contact

    The Website uses Mediavine to manage all third-party advertising on the Website. Mediavine serves content and advertisements when you visit the Website, which may use cookies. Mediavine may collect IP addresses and location to serve personalized ads. If you would like more information about this practice and to know your choices to opt-in or opt-out of this data collection, please visit http://www.networkadvertising.org/managing/opt_out.asp.

    We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.