BBQ MEATBALLS WITH PEPPER AND CHEESE ANIMAL CUT-OUTS

BBQ Meatballs with Pepper and Cheese Animal Cut-Outs image

A whimsical after school snack which is sure to please hungry kids. Serve with extra BBQ sauce and a cold glass of milk.

Provided by got milk?(R)

Categories Trusted Brands: Recipes and Tips got milk?®

Time 1h15m

Yield 6

Number Of Ingredients 20

Ingredients

2 slices bread, crusts removed, torn into pieces
½ cup whole milk
1 egg, beaten
1 tablespoon dried parsley
½ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
⅛ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon dried Italian herb seasoning
¼ teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 pound ground beef
¼ cup grated sweet onion
1 cup barbecue sauce, plus additional for serving
1 green bell pepper
1 orange bell pepper
1 red bell pepper
4 (1/4-inch) slices Colby-Monterey Jack cheese
4 (1/4-inch) slices mild Cheddar cheese
Animal vegetable cutters
25 4-inch toothpicks

Steps:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Soak pieces of torn bread in the milk in a bowl for 5 minutes. Gently squeeze out milk. Add beaten egg to the soaked bread and mix well.
Mix garlic powder, onion powder, parsley, salt, Italian herb seasoning, sugar, and Parmesan cheese together in a small bowl. Add to bread-egg mixture.
Place ground beef in a mixing bowl. Add seasoning mixture and onions; mix together with a fork. If mixture is too dry, add up to a tablespoon of milk. Roll into 25 meatballs and arrange on rimmed baking sheet.
Bake in preheated oven until browned and cooked through, about 18 minutes.
Drain meatballs on a paper towel. Remove grease from the baking sheet. Transfer meatballs back to the baking sheet. Drizzle 1 cup BBQ sauce over meatballs.
Return sheet to oven and bake 12 more minutes.
Use a small animal vegetable cutter to make animals out of green, orange, and red peppers. Cut animals out of Colby Jack and mild Cheddar cheese.
Drain meatballs on a paper towel and add more BBQ sauce if desired. Add cheese animal cut-out and then animal pepper cut-out to the toothpicks. Work quickly to add toothpick to each meatball.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 413.3 calories, Carbohydrate 25.5 g, Cholesterol 112.7 mg, Fat 24 g, Fiber 1.6 g, Protein 23.3 g, SaturatedFat 12.3 g, Sodium 1010.9 mg, Sugar 14.6 g