Sweet and Sour Ham Balls

By Dianne Godfrey.
 Date: Sep. 30th, 2019 - 1:00 PM

Ingredients

1 large red sweet pepper, seeded and quartered

1 teaspoon water

1 (8 ounce) can pineapple chunks (juice pack), undrained

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce

2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger

2 teaspoons rice vinegar

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ cup soft whole grain bread crumbs. To make soft bread crumbs, tear whole grain bread into pieces and process in a food processor or use a blender.

¼ cup refrigerated or frozen egg product, thawed, or 1 egg, lightly beaten

2 teaspoons dry mustard

10 ounces lean ground pork

4 ounces lean ground lower sodium cooked ham.  Ask your butcher to grind the ham for you. Or dice the ham, place in a food processor and process until ground.

2 (9 ounce) packages fresh spinach

¼ cup sliced almonds, toasted (optional)

 

Preparation

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. For sauce, place sweet pepper quarters, cut sides down, in a microwave-safe dish. Add the water. Cover with plastic wrap. Microwave on 100% power (high) 4 to 5 minutes or until tender. Let stand about 10 minutes or until edges of skins are loosened. Gently peel off skins and discard.
  2. Place sweet pepper quarters in a food processor; cover and process until smooth. Drain pineapple, reserving ⅓ cup of the juice; set pineapple chunks aside. Add reserved ⅓ cup pineapple juice, the cornstarch, brown sugar, soy sauce, ginger, vinegar and garlic to sweet pepper in food processor. Cover and process until combined; set aside.
  3. For ham balls, in a medium bowl combine bread crumbs, egg and dry mustard. Add ground pork and ground ham; mix well. Form mixture into 12 balls and place in a 2-quart rectangular baking dish. Pour sauce over ham balls. Bake, uncovered, about 30 minutes or until ham balls are done (160°F) and sauce is bubbly on the edges.
  4. Meanwhile, heat an extra-large skillet over medium-high heat. Add reserved pineapple chunks; cook 4 to 5 minutes or until lightly browned, turning occasionally. Add spinach in batches, cooking until spinach is wilted. Drain any excess liquid.
  5. Serve ham balls and sauce over spinach mixture. If desired, sprinkle with toasted almonds.

Sweet-&-Sour Ham Balls