Meatball Breadstick Skewers
Served with a side of marinara sauce for dipping, these Meatball Breadstick Skewers are a fun party appetizer or meal!
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When it comes to recipes, what exactly do you consider an ingredient? Onions, celery, garlic, herbs + spices – those are all ingredients. I get that. But what about meatballs? Are meatballs an ingredient? I’m not entirely sure, but for argument’s sake, let’s consider meatballs as an ingredient. After all, there are a bunch of different versions of meatballs out there. I’ve included my go-to version in the recipe below, but you could even use store-bought meatballs for these Meatball Breadstick Skewers.
With that in mind, I’ll take it one step further and say that meatballs are a super versatile ingredient. They’re kinda like Bubba’s types of shrimp from Forrest Gump. You can take meatballs and serve them in a BBQ sandwich. Or you can serve those meatballs in Pull Apart Slider form. You can change up the seasonings and serve those meatballs over grilled naan for a Mediterranean twist. Or you can put ’em in a grilled cheese sandwich (mmm…grilled cheese and meatballs!). And you can’t forget the classic – Spaghetti and Meatballs.
The bonus thing about meatballs being used in so many recipes is that you can spend some time to make a big batch, and then store ’em in your freezer. We almost always keep a bag of baked meatballs in the downstairs freezer. That way, we can pull together a quick dinner on the run that doesn’t taste like a quick dinner on the run.
Meatball Breadstick Skewers
Ok, now that our Ode to the Meatball is complete, let’s add a new recipe to the list – we can call it an epilogue of sorts. Meatball Breadstick Skewers. Take juicy, flavorful meatballs and weave crescent dough in between ’em. Use a skewer to hold it all together, and you’ve got these Meatball Breadstick Skewers. These skewers are a fun and delicious appetizer!
For these skewers, I used a store-bought can of crescent dough. We could have the same ingredient debate here – is crescent dough an ingredient? For simplicity’s sake, we’ll say it is. That makes this recipe insanely easy to make! (If you want to make your own breadstick dough, though, then I won’t stop you. In fact, I’ll applaud your effort.)
I also served these meatball skewers with a side of marinara or pizza sauce. Truthfully, they don’t even need the sauce, but I just felt like a sauce was in order since these skewers just look so dip-able. No matter how you choose to serve these skewers, I can promise you this is one appetizer that will be a family favorite!
Did you make a batch of these Meatball Breadstick Skewers at home? Leave a comment, or snap a photo and tag me on Instagram (@Spicedblog). I’d love to see your version of this fun appetizer!
Meatball Breadstick Skewers
Ingredients
For the Meatballs
- ⅓ cup Italian-seasoned bread crumbs
- 2 Tbsp milk
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- ½ medium white onion finely diced
- 8 oz. ground beef
- 8 oz. ground pork
- 1 large egg lightly beaten
- 2 Tbsp fresh Italian parsley minced
- 1 tsp garlic minced
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
- 2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese grated
For the Skewers
- 1 8-oz. can refrigerated crescent roll dough
- 4 wooden skewers
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- marinara sauce for serving
Instructions
For the Meatballs
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
- Using a medium bowl, combine the bread crumbs and milk; let soak for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, add the olive oil to a medium frying pan and place over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the diced onions and cook for 6-7 minutes, or until onions begin to soften.
- Transfer onions and soaked bread crumbs into a large mixing bowl. Add all of the remaining meatball ingredients (beef, pork, egg, parsley, garlic, salt, pepper, oregano, red pepper and Parmesan cheese). Mix until just combined. (Tip: Take care not to overmix or the meatball may be tough.)
- Shape mixture into (12) golf ball-sized meatballs and place 1” apart on prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until meatballs are no longer pink in the center.
- Reduce oven temperature to 375°F.
For the Skewers
- Unroll breadstick dough and separate dough into 8 pieces. Roll each piece of dough into a 12” log. Pinch the ends of two of the pieces of dough together and then twist the pieces around each other to create a “braid.”
- Insert wooden skewer through end of one piece of dough. Next, add 1 meatball to skewer. Repeat process, weaving the dough back and forth and adding 2 more meatballs. Place skewer on prepared baking sheet.
- Repeat process with remaining ingredients to create a total of 4 skewers. Place skewers at least 1” apart on baking sheet.
- Bake at 375°F for 10 minutes. Remove skewers from oven and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Continue baking for 3-5 more minutes, or until cheese has fully melted.
- Serve skewers with marinara sauce for dipping.
Notes
Looking for more tasty meatball recipes? Check out these other favorites, too:
Meatball Parm French Bread Pizza
These certainly look fun – and delicious! I’d have to say a meatball (or dough) can be an ingredient when used in something else.
I like that you’ve used two kinds of meat in these meatballs. That would certainly add some extra flavor. Can’t wait to give these a try!
Do give this meatball recipe a shot sometime, Kathy! I love the beef + pork combination, and we really do always keep a bag of these cooked meatball in the freezer. That way you can have classics (like spaghetti & meatballs) or fun new twists (like these skewers) ready to go at a moments notice!
I love this idea, which should come as no surpirse to me, because you are the undisputed kind of party food, as far as I’m concerned. But the reason why I love this idea is that with something as simple and easy as a can of crescent rolls, you could stretch out those meatballs and make something twice as filling, which would be a bonus as a party. Plus, they’re unusual, and they look so cool. I bet they’d be delicious dipped into a tahini sauce, too! Or a peanut sauce! I just wish that I could throw a party! Damn pandemic.
Why thank you, kind sir. I do enjoy party food – the only problem is we can’t party these days. I agree with you. Damn pandemic. Laura and I were just talking the other day that we want to throw a huge backyard party this summer and call it the 2020 redo party. We’ll see. I do really like your tahini sauce idea for these skewers though. Yum!!
Technically speaking, meatballs are the final product that is made from other ingredients. But if we consider this argument, we will also could end up separating out the ingredients into molecules and atoms. Who needs that? Besides, what if you were to use store-bought or previously made and frozen meatballs? That’s definitely should be considered as a single ingredient.
Anyway, these meatball skewers look and sound delicious, and the idea itself is cool. Now, we have “Pigs in a blanket”, so we need to find a cool name for this recipe, too!
Ah, you make an excellent point here, Ben. How far back do you have to go? I think everyone would agree that molecules and atoms are too far. I’m with you – we’ll count the meatballs as a single ingredient.
No matter. These skewers are a fun twist on meatballs! Perhaps “Cows in a Curl”? That’s not great, but it’s the best I can do at 7am. Haha!
For these I’m thinking meatballs can most definitely be an ingredient! And that opens up the arena to using all sorts of meatballs! These are such a brilliant idea! You know where these would be a huge hit? At the Renaissance Festival – when we’re all vaccinated and this virus is kaput!
Ah, you make a good point, Shashi – different types of meatballs. I used my classic Italian-style meatballs here, but I could see mixing that up and using glazed meatballs, too. What a fun idea! Also, I want to go to a Renaissance Festival – believe it or not, I’ve never been to one!
How much fun are these breadstick skewers?! You’re so creative, David! Anything on a stick is a winner… seriously. I agree, meatballs are a versatile ingredient — so much you can do with them!
I’m with ya 100%, Michelle – food on a stick is always better! 🙂 These were a fun way to play around with meatballs and crescent roll dough. Thanks so much!
these look very enticing david. yep everybody loves a meatball!!
I know, right? You can’t ever go wrong with a good meatball! 🙂
What a great idea to change up meatballs by adding a breadstick around it and a skewer. These would be great to have just sitting in front of the TV watching some favourite films. And when we’re allowed to mix with other people again, an ideal party food! Hopefully later this year….fingers (and everything else) crossed!!
This would be a great party food for when we’re allowed to see people again – I’m with ya, Neil. Hopefully that comes soon! I love hanging out with the family, but I miss my friends. Zoom just isn’t the same! Hang in there…the end is in sight (I think). 🙂
These look like some very tasty meatballs, David! Love how your creative way of skewering them – who wouldn’t want to dig in!?
Thanks so much, Marissa! These were a fun way of serving up meatballs and breadsticks. 🙂
Great idea of using the meatballs and rolls on a skewers , looks fabulous! everyone loves meatballs and this will be a great hit. I’m thinking of serving these meatballs and breadstick skewers over the pasta for my kids, it would be a lot exciting for them to eat, thanks for the idea, David! Happy February!
That’s a great idea, Aarthi! If you made smaller meatballs and then serve the skewers over pasta (maybe cheesy pasta?), then this would be a fun idea for the kids. I might have to try that here! Happy February back at ya!
Ohhh this is something new to me, such a great idea making it a complete dish in one.
It’s a fun one indeed, Raymund…and you can totally use this idea with different flavored meatballs, too!
These look really yummy. Such a fun way to eat meatballs. I would say yes in this recipe the meatball is an ingredient.
Thanks so much, Dawn! We always keep meatballs around here (in the freezer), and this was certainly a fun way to serve ’em up!