This appetizer is sure to impress!

Tender chicken parmesan meatballs are tucked inside a buttery, flaky fillo dough!

When you think of meatballs as appetizers, your mind immediately goes to saucy cocktail meatballs with cute little toothpicks, doesn’t it? It’s those toothpicks! Honestly, food on sticks get our attention every single time!  

Bite-sized finger foods hold some power over me.  I think I convince myself that because I’m eating bite-sized foods that I can eat as many of them as I want without consequence.

These chicken parmesan meatballs are going to revolutionalize the cocktail meatball.  For starters, there are no toothpicks!  Instead, I used Athens Fillo Dough to surround each tender little meatball.  

The delicate, buttery dough adds a crisp contrast to the soft, succulent meatball.  And speaking of the meatball, these guys are lean but flavorful; ground chicken and spices are combined and then baked just until golden.  

Mozzarella cheese gets added to each little fillo pouch just before baking.  Serve these appetizers with a very simple, homemade marinara sauce and you have yourself an impressive chicken parmesan appetizer that will be a huge hit wherever they will be served!

Notes about the recipe:

• Do not over mix your meatball ingredients!  Over-mixing leads to tough meatballs.  Mix by hand JUST until combined.  
• I used my hands to form my meatballs, but a small cookie scoop would work.  My meatballs were roughly the size of a large gumball or 2-inches.
• When working with fillo, always keep your dough topped with a piece of plastic wrap and a damp kitchen towel.  This will keep the dough from drying out and becoming brittle.  Once the dough becomes brittle, it becomes very difficult to work with.   
• Work quickly with your dough and be generous with the butter! I cut my stack of dough into 6 equal squares, but if your meatballs are larger, you may have to adjust the size of your squares.
• I lightly sprayed the tops of my bundles with non-spray just before baking.

 

 

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Disclosure: I received compensation from Athens Foods for recipe development purposes. All opinions are my own.