Baby shower meatballs

perfect for potluck, or family meal! just throw it in a slow cooker and forget it!

Tips

do even less!

In the recipe below, you make a barbecue sauce in the crockpot while cooking meatballs. I like this method because it allows you to be creative and customize the sauce just to your liking. If you don’t have all the ingredients to make a BBQ sauce but have a jug of it, use it! See the revised recipe with your favorite sauce below. Prepare as outlined in instructions

• ½ cup plus 3 tablespoons fig jelly 
• 1 1/2 cups of your favorite barbeque sauce
• 1 inch thumb of ginger, minced
• 2 teaspoons fennel seeds
• 1 whole cinnamon stick
• ~2 bags of frozen meatballs (I used 22-ounce bags) frozen fully cooked meatballs (vegetarian meatballs work, too) 
• ½ cup Hennessy (any cognac works), optional

baby shower meatballs

Preparation Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 2-4 hours | Serving size: 40 meatballs

Gather

• 4 New Mexico chilies, dried and stems removed 
• 4 árbol chilies, dried and stems removed
• ½ cup plus 3 tablespoons fig jelly 
• 1 cup ketchup
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 1-inch thumb of ginger, minced
• 1 cinnamon stick 
• 2 tablespoons dried thyme 
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• ½ tablespoon garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons black powder 
• 1 teaspoon cayenne
• 2 teaspoons fennel seeds
• 2 teaspoons paprika 
• ~2 bags of frozen meatballs (I used 22-ounce bags) frozen fully cooked meatballs (vegetarian meatballs work, too) 
• ½ cup Hennessy (any cognac works), optional
  
  Note: Those who are spice-sensitive should cut chilies in half, or forgo altogether. A teaspoon of red pepper flakes will help balance flavor.

Follow

1. Bring at least 3 cups of water to a rapid boil. Add all dried peppers to the boiling water. Let cook for 5 minutes. Set up a blender nearby. Remove softened peppers and place in the blender. Pour in 1½ cups of pepper water into the blender. Blend on high until smooth. Pour blended peppers into the slow cooker. 
2. Whisk in all remaining ingredients except for meatballs and cognac (if using). Mix in the meatballs, coating them as best you can. Cook in the slow cooker at its high setting for 2 hours or at its low setting for 4 hours. If you’re using cognac: On the high setting, add cognac 30 minutes before done; on the low setting, add 1 hour before done. (Mixing the meatballs at least once will help incorporate the juices.)
3. Keep warm, serve on a platter to share, in a sandwich or on rice with vegetables for a family meal.