Doctor Oz has been on a roll with healthy Italian recipes lately, like Kitchen Diva’s Vegetarian Spaghetti Bolognese Recipe, Kitchen Diva’s Vegetarian Lasagna Recipe and Dr. Oz’s Healthy Spaghetti & Meatballs Recipe.  Dave Lieberman’s Quinoa Meatball recipe differs from the rest in that it uses quinoa in the meatballs to increase the protein and reduce the calories and saturated fat… what a great idea!  I am thinking of trying this recipe with ground turkey or ground chicken instead of ground beef, to make it even healthier (although at 595 calories per portion, it is not too bad for you as it is)!

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Dr. Oz & Dave Lieberman’s Recipe for Quinoa Meatballs

For more great ways to eat healthy, don’t forget to checkout Dave Lieberman’s book The 10 Things You Need to Eat: And More Than 100 Easy and Delicious Ways to Prepare Them.

Ingredients for the Tomato Sauce:
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 celery stalks, diced
- 1 carrot, diced
- 1 tsp hot red pepper flakes
- 1 (28 ounce) can tomatoes, chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 TB balsamic vinegar
- salt & pepper

Ingredients for the Meatballs:
- 3 TB canola oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 1/2 cups cooked Organic Quinoa
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
- 1 egg
- 3 TB parsley leaves, chopped
- 1/2 TB salt
- 3/4 TB black pepper
- 1 pound linguine
- 1 handful basil leaves

Directions:
1.  Over medium heat, warm a large pot with the olive oil.
2.  Cook the onion, celery, red pepper flakes and carrots.
3.  After 10-15 minutes, add the tomatoes, vinegar and garlic, and cook for 20 more minutes.
4.  Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.
5.  In a frying pan, heat the canola oil and cook the onion until soft.
6.  Let the onion cool.
7.  In a large bowl, mix the ground beef, quinoa, Parmesan cheese, parsley, egg, onions and salt and pepper.
8.  Form 2 inch balls and place on a baking sheet.
9.  Bake for 20-25 minutes.
10.  Cook the linguine or spaghetti.
11.  Serve the linguine or spaghetti with the sauce, meatballs and torn basil leaves on top.