M is for Meatballs. S is for Sliders. D is for Delicious.

Meatball Sliders

Servings 2 servings (4 sliders total)

Ingredients
4 multi-grain or whole wheat slider buns or rolls (fresh or frozen)
16 frozen turkey or beef meatballs
1 green pepper
1/2 yellow onion
Barbecue sauce
Shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Prep Time: 10 to 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 to 35 minutes.
Total Time: 40 to 45 minutes.

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees (or what temperature is specified on frozen meatball bag).
Bake meatballs for 20 to 25 minutes, or until internal temperature is 165 degree for 15 seconds.
Chop green pepper in half and again into quarters to make medium sized strips. Slice onion to make strips. Toss green pepper and onion into a medium sauce pan. Towards the end of the baking time for the meatballs, begin to saute the green pepper and onion strips.
Remove meatballs from the oven. Set aside and keep warm.
Place frozen rolls onto a baking sheet. Put into the oven still at 375 degrees until golden brown, about 7 to 9 minutes.
Put the meatballs in with the green pepper and onion strips when green pepper and onion strips are mostly soft. Cover in desired amount of Barbecue sauce. Reduce heat to low and cover with a lid.
Remove rolls from the oven when finished. Wait about 5 minutes for rolls to cool without covering.
Slice rolls in half. Remove some of the inside of the roll from the top (this will better help keep the meatballs from rolling out of the slider).
Remove meatballs, green pepper and onion slices from heat. Scoop 4 meatballs with some of the green pepper and onion strips onto each roll. Before placing the top of the roll on top of the meatballs, sprinkle a desired amount of the shredded sharp cheddar cheese on top of the meatballs. Then place the top of the roll on top of the cheese and meatballs. Serve warm.

Nutrition
Calories 550 Fat 18g Sat. Fat 4g Carb. 55g Fiber 7g Protein 36g Sodium 833mg Potassium 400mg
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Back Story
From June to December, I had the honor being an Editorial Intern at Prevention Magazine. Through this life changing experience, I was able to learn different skills inside of the kitchen, about recipe creation and about nutrition analysis. One of the benefits of the positions was traveling to the test kitchen and trying the different recipes. This Meatball Sliders recipe was one of my favorites.

Of course I didn't follow the directions and took my own direction with it (I really will never learn...).

The reason I made this now was because I had a couple for frozen meatballs. I think one of the biggest reasons I make particular dishes is because I know I have a coupon for it. And why not save money where I can? There's something enthralling about clipping coupons. It's like a high that will save me money. 

I also had a coupon for frozen multi-grain rolls, so basically it was a double win. And because I was only making this recipe for two, I am able to save the rolls for other meals.

Tips and Tricks
These Meatball Sliders are very simple to make and assemble. While the prep and cooking time may seem a bit steep for a week night if you need to make dinner in a hurry, the meatballs can be made in advance and warmed up later. I wouldn't recommend making the rolls in advance if they're frozen because it could make the rolls stale.

My Mistake
I did make one mistake when making this recipe. I thought it would be a good idea to put the shredded cheese on top of the meatballs while they had to finish up baking in the oven. No.

With 5 minutes left to bake, I took the meatballs out of the oven. I tried to sprinkle the cheese on top of the meatballs, but because meatballs are obviously round, the cheese didn't stay on top of the meatballs and melted to the tray. I was determined and tried to sprinkle the cheese on all of the meatballs. At least I was dedicated enough to cover the entire tray. But the meatballs still had about 5 minutes left to cook.

So, because I didn't want to risk food poisoning, I put the meatballs back into the oven, cheese already melted to the baking sheet and all. And you know what happens to cheese after 5 minutes of baking? It burns. To the baking sheet. The meatballs were perfect but scraping burnt cheese off of a baking sheet is a pain in the ass.

This is why I topped the sliders with the cheese at the end. The cheese melted onto the meatballs at this point because they were still hot.  So in the end, don't make this mistake.