Love this recipe? Shout it from the rooftops!

Before I get to this week’s low carb Meatball Monday recipe, can we chat for a bit? I feel like we haven’t talked in awhile, and I want to share some stuff with you about where my head is regarding the blog and other projects I’ve got going on. Feel free to skip the text and scroll down to get straight to the recipe!

First, for those of you that have been asking about it, I’ve decided not to publish a Summer ezine this year. I may resume the ezines in the fall – or I may not.

You guys have supported them so well, and definitely made it worth my effort financially to produce them, so I thank you for that! The problem is, they take up a lot of time and I only have so much of it to spread around. I need a break so I can concentrate on some other areas that I feel I’ve been neglecting lately.

One of my goals this summer is to focus on providing better quality content here on the blog in the form of more recipes and meal plans. In addition to frequency, I was reading over some old posts of mine and was struck by how much more personal (and funny!) I used to be compared to my more recent posts. When did I get so boring??? Ugh.

I was trying to figure out why, and I think part of it is a lack of time/too many irons in the fire – though I don’t think that’s the only reason. One thing that’s different is that I used to write the posts the same day as I made the recipe – that made for long days and a lot of work – but the posts were more enthusiastic and “in the moment” back then.

In the interest of efficiency, I started having cooking days where I’d make a bunch of recipes, and then I’d write the posts later. It definitely saved time, but I feel like along the way I lost some of the fun and it shows in my writing.

I think another factor is that instead of writing for me and just having fun, I started feeling the pressure of having so many readers and it made me second guess some of my writing. What if nobody thinks it’s funny? What if someone is offended by my opinion? What if I don’t sound smart enough??? I became too concerned with everything being polished and perfect, and as a result I think I lost some of the spontaneity that made the blog fun to read (and write.)

I’ve decided that I’m going to write what I want to write (like I used to) and not worry so much about what people think of it. I suspect that like me, most of you appreciate honesty and candor over political correctness, and won’t mind at all. And hey, if we don’t see eye to eye, we can always duke it out (politely of course) in the comments!

Speaking of comments, another thing I need to tighten up on is responding to them more consistently. At one time the comments were so plentiful that it would take me at least an hour a day to answer them all – but I made sure that I did anyway, and I loved chatting with you. I started falling behind when I got busy with other social media though, and eventually gave up on trying to catch up.

I feel like I owe you an apology because a lot of you stopped commenting, and I can only think it’s because you felt like I wasn’t listening. I’m sorry for that – I read ALL of the comments even if I don’t always respond, but I promise you that I will make it a priority to respond to your comments here when you take time out of your busy schedules to leave them!

I get asked a lot when I’m going to write a “real” book. I’ve been so overwhelmed with everything else I’ve got going on that I haven’t even been able to think about that. This Summer I plan to figure out my next move. I have some important decisions to make in that regard. Do I self publish a hard copy in addition to an ebook/kindle version? Self publishing the right way can be a big expense/risk, but it’s something that I’ve been wanting to do for a long time. Once I make that decision I need to figure out whether it will contain meal plans or just recipes?? What will the theme be if any?? What features can I add to make it more valuable to my readers? All questions I need to figure out answers to before I get started. Your feedback/suggestions would be invaluable to me – please feel free to leave them in the comments! Most importantly, do you care about a hard copy, or are you happy with the ebook format??

Finally, I’m excited to let you know that I’ve officially hired a designer to help me work on a branding/logo package for IBIH. We need a facelift, and I’m SO excited to get started! Once we settle on the colors, logo, fonts, etc. I will be having the blog completely made over – not just in looks but also in functionality. It will be faster and more efficient, even easier to navigate, and hopefully a lot more attractive. It’s going to be AWESOME.

So that’s my Summer, Peeps! I’m tired just reading about it! There are a few other things in the works too, but I’ll tell you about that another time! Meanwhile, thanks for putting up with my blah de blah, and now on to this crave-worthy meatball recipe!

I’ve talked enough for one post so I’ll just say that these are fantastic. All of the flavors of your favorite antipasto platter, jammed into a single meatball! Olives, cured meats, peppers, herbs, cheese – it’s all in there! The salty feta core really complements the briny flavor of the kalamata olives, and the sweet tang of the cherry peppers. It’s a party in your mouth – no joke!

You can serve these hot with keto friendly marinara sauce, or even eat them cold right out of the fridge. I made some garlic and herb olive oil for mine (just crushed garlic, olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper) and ate them at room temperature after I shot the photos. I think that was my favorite, but they are good no matter how you serve them – even plain they are loaded with flavor!

clock clock icon cutlery cutlery icon flag flag icon folder folder icon instagram instagram icon pinterest pinterest icon print print icon squares squares icon Feta Stuffed Antipasto Meatballs – Low Carb and Gluten Free Recipe Yield: 16 meatballs 1 x Print Pin Description A low carb and gluten free meatball based on the flavors of an antipasto platter! Scale 1x 2x 3x Ingredients 1 lb ground chuck (80/20)

lb ground chuck (80/20) 1 egg

egg 1/4 cup almond flour

almond flour 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

grated parmesan cheese 2 Tbsp pepperoncini, chopped (see example|

pepperoncini, chopped (see example| 3 Tbsp sweet cherry peppers, chopped (see example|

sweet cherry peppers, chopped (see example| 1 Tbsp kalamata olives, chopped (see example|

kalamata olives, chopped (see example| 1/4 cup proscuitto or cappocollo deli meat, chopped

proscuitto or cappocollo deli meat, chopped 1 Tbsp fresh oregano, chopped

fresh oregano, chopped 1/2 tsp kosher salt

kosher salt 1/4 tsp ground black pepper

ground black pepper 16 1/2 inch squares of feta cheese

inch squares of feta cheese 2 Tbsp olive oil for frying Instructions Combine the meatball ingredients (except for the feta and olive oil) in a medium sized bowl and mix thoroughly. Form into 16 meatballs. Take each meatball, flatten it slightly and place a square of feta in the center. Reform the meat into a ball around the cheese. Heat the olive oil in a nonstick pan and cook the meatballs in batches until golden brown and cooked through (about 3-4 minutes per side.) Serve at any temperature, plain or with your choice of sauce. Notes Approximate nutrition info per meatball: 88 calories, 6g fat, .6g net carbs, 7g protein Nutrition Serving Size: I'm not the boss of you

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There is still a week left to enter my June giveaway for the Kitchenaid Stand Mixer!!! Will you be the winner? I’m rootin’ for ya! ;)

Love this recipe? Shout it from the rooftops!