Zucchini Meatballs & The Last Round of Fall 2011 Insider's Report PC Product Reviews

Zucchini is going in everything around here these days, so why not meatballs?  I figure zucchini keeps baked goods moist, so in the meatballs it went.  Now if I could just get my two year old to try meat, I'd be able to sneak in some extra veggies.  I made these meatballs so I could try out the PC Meatball Cooking Sauce and wrap up this fall's Insider's Report product reviews.  I really don't know how much the zucchini really added to the moistness or flavour, but it's a fun way to sneak in a green vegetable if you have  a picky eater (young or old).  This is a great meatball recipe that can be used pretty much any way you like to serve them as they are only mildly seasoned, letting the beef flavour rule.

My Zucchini Meatballs

Makes 25 golf ball-sized meatballs

2 lbs lean ground beef

1/2 medium sized onion, grated

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup dry bread crumbs

1 egg

1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce

1 cup shredded zucchini

Salt & pepper to taste

In a large bowl, mix all ingredients by hand and form into balls (I make large, slightly larger than golf ball sized ones).  Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment and bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 30 minutes.

So, as I mentioned, I made these meatballs to try out the new PC Meatball Cooking Sauce ($2.49, Atlantic).  The Pulled Pork Cooking Sauce was fantastic, so I had high expectations for this one too.  I was a bit let down unfortunately.  When I opened the bottle the sauce smelled good so I took a little taste, but the celery flavour was a bit overwhelming for me.  I didn't cook it on the stovetop as the bottle suggested, but poured the full bottle over my full batch of Zucchini Meatballs and baked it at 350 for 30 minutes.  Strangely enough, the sauce was really tasty when eating the meatballs, but just too 'celery-y' when you got some sauce alone.  Due to the heavy handedness of the seasoning, I don't think I'll be buying more of this sauce for us.  Without the celery flavour, the sauce is a thick, dark, sweet and sour sauce that is otherwise well balanced.

Over the weekend, I also was able to try one of the more classic PC pizzas, the PC Mozzarella Thin & Crispy Pizza.  I was actually astonished that my little girl ate some of it, which is a good thing!  While I thought the toppings were good and the bits of pesto added some great flavour, I found the crust a bit bland and reminiscent of the frozen pizzas available many years ago.  Personally I don't find the frozen thin crust pizzas very filling and could no doubt eat the whole thing myself (yeah, I love pizza).

I also got to try some of the PC Green Express Cycle Dishwasher Detergent ($6.49 for a box of 25).  These claim to let you use your dishwasher's economy cycle and get the same results as the regular wash.  Unfortunately our ancient and Frankenstein's monster-ish portable dishwasher doesn't have an economy cycle so I can't verify that claim, but on a regular wash cycle, our dishes came out sparkling clean and it's nice knowing that less chemicals were involved.  When the old beast finally gives in and dies I will definitely try these again in my brand new dishwasher!

Loblaws also let me try some of the new school supplies, including the J+- Pencils and Notebook.  I LOVE the small notebook.  It's a bit larger than a chequebook (remember those?) but it has an elastic wrap around strap that keeps my coupons secure along with my grocery list.  I suppose the kids could use it too ;).  At $3 each, I might pick up a couple of pink ones to have as spares when this one runs out, it is the perfect purse size.  The pencils, well... are just pencils.  I haven't shopped for pencils in years and won't have to again for another three, but a tube of 20 pencils retails for $3 which seems like a fair price for a good quality pencil.

So my first product tests are finished.  It was so much fun to try out some new products and I really enjoyed letting you know how I liked them (or not so much).  I'd love to hear your opinions if you try any of the products I've reviewed!