I have a confession:  I love Valentine’s Day. I detest heart-shaped things- jewelry, desserts, home goods- but I adore this holiday. Yes, it’s totally cheesy and a little embarrassing to admit, but it’s true. Relationship or naw, it’s an excuse to pamper someone you love (that someone can totally be yourself), pop some quality vino, and cook a great meal to some dope tunes. It’s been quite awhile, like a decade?, since anyone has planned a Valentine’s Day date out, so I don’t even think about them anymore. I honestly cannot think of anything more overrated.

So in the spirit of cooking with love and cheesiness, I present to you a VERY easy and EXTREMELY delicious recipe from Skinnytaste- Chicken Cordon Bleu Meatballs. Even if you are a novice cook, these are shockingly delicious and something different. They were the shocking front-runner in a chicken cook-off that I tried this weekend. Because who doesn’t have a trial dinner party in anticipation of Valentine’s Day dinner?

Juicy, Cheesy, Wonderful Bleu Balls.

Not the prettiest pic, but I wanted to know how they’d do with pasta. Shockingly, fantastic, just as anything does with pasta.

Without further ado, here’s the recipe. Easy, inexpensive and can be made ahead of time. Seriously, what’s better than bleu balls??

Skinnytaste’s Chicken Cordon Bleu Balls

Macarons & Mayhem Note:  This recipe makes 12 balls and a little bit of sauce. I was scraping the bottom of the pan for sauce for one bowl of pasta. If you are making extra sauce for pasta, I would consider quadrupling the sauce recipe which is what is noted here.

For the Bleu Balls:

• 1.5 pounds of ground chicken
• 1/4 c. seasoned breadcrumbs – homemade or store-bought
• 1/4 c. grated Parmesan
• 1/4 c. finely chopped parsley
• 1 egg
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 2 slices (or a little more) of deli ham, cut into 6 pieces each
• 3 slices of Swiss, cut into 4 pieces each

For the Sauce:

• 4 T. unsalted butter
• 1 T. flour
• 1 c. white wine
• 4 c. low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 c. milk
• 4 T. Dijon mustard
• 1 T. fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• ground pepper
• 1 T. chopped, fresh parsley

1. Preheat oven to 425F. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray.
2. For the meatballs:  combine all ingredients except for ham and Swiss in a bowl.
3. Drop 12 equal portions of meatball mix onto greased baking sheet.
4. Take one piece of ham and one piece of Swiss and place in middle of meatball mix. Form meatball around ham and cheese insides.
5. Bake 20 minutes.

While the meatballs are baking, make this simple sauce.

1. Using a large skillet with a lid, melt the butter over medium heat. Sprinkle in flour and whisk for about a minute.
2. Whisk in wine and cook for a minute or two.
3. Whisk in chicken broth and milk.
4. Bring to a boil, then simmer until thickened slightly, about 5 minutes (or longer if you are using this quadrupled sauce recipe).
5. Whisk in mustard and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Remove from heat.

When meatballs are done, add them to the skillet with sauce. Cover and sim(You may want to remove about half of the sauce or so to another pan so that meatballs are not totally submerged). Simmer over medium-low heat until the meatballs are cooked through, about five minutes.

Serve with pasta or simple greens.