Chicken Parm Meatballs: The Ultimate Mariners Season Munch

Baseball season is in full swing, and whether you’re catching the game at home or hosting a weekend watch party, it’s time to bring the flavor to your lineup. Des Moines City Manager, Katherine Caffrey, recommends Chicken Parm Meatballs by Jenny Rosenstrach of Dinner: A Love Story, as seen on the Cup of Jo website. A crowd-pleaser with a twist on a classic—perfect for fueling fans through extra innings, backyard cookouts, or easy weeknight dinners.

Juicy ground chicken gets loaded up with Pecorino cheese, zesty lemon, fennel seeds, and fresh garlic for a flavor that knocks it out of the park. No pre-grated shortcuts here—just real, quality ingredients. Each meatball is brushed with a pizza sauce and olive oil blend and then roasted to golden perfection. The finishing play? A spoonful of marinara and a slice of fresh mozzarella, broiled until bubbly and melty.

Served with extra sauce for dipping, these meatballs deliver everything you love about chicken parm—without the breading or frying. Pile them on pasta, tuck them into a hoagie, or enjoy them straight off the tray between pitches. However you serve them, they’re sure to be the MVPs of your game-day spread.

Makes about 20 meatballs

Ingredients

• 1.25 lb ground chicken

• ½ c breadcrumbs

• 2 TB chopped onion

• 1 TB chopped parsley

• ½ c. Pecorino cheese or parmesan (use the real stuff, not the grated stuff in a jar. It makes such a difference!)

• Salt and pepper

• 1 clove garlic, minced

• 1 tsp fennel seeds

• 1 egg, whisked

• Zest of half a lemon

• 3 TB olive oil

• 14 oz jar of pizza sauce or marinara sauce (we love Rao’s, but any brand works)

• 4-6 oz fresh mozzarella (you will slice this into thin slices—you’ll melt this onto the meatballs, and it is what makes it yummy…and kid friendly)

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 400F, setting the rack to the upper third part of the oven. In a large bowl, using your hands, gently mix the first 11 ingredients. Shape into lacrosse-ball-sized balls (That would be somewhere between golf and tennis) and place a few inches from each other on a foil-lined baking sheet. In a small bowl, mix one spoonful of your pizza sauce with olive oil. Brush this mixture on top of each meatball. Bake for 15 minutes.

  
  

Remove meatballs from oven, spoon some sauce on top of each meatball, and cover each with a slice of cheese. Broil another 3 to 5 minutes until cheese is bubbly and golden. Heat remaining sauce in a small saucepan. Serve meatballs with a dollop of sauce.

"Also, don’t skip the lemon zest or the fennel. That’s what takes the meatballs from being good to great." - Cup of Jo