Tuna Balls ~ A Meatless Recipe for Lent {Kids Love Them}

Tuna balls! 

I can’t begin to tell you how much my kids and I like these! I started making these for Lent more than 8 years ago, and they are still well loved! My kids love the taste and I love the versatility! 

They are a great on-the-go meal! Easy to eat in the car or when we’re out of the house. I can make a batch the night before a trip, put them in the fridge, and before we leave I put them into a cooler with a few other munchies, like carrots or crackers. It’s an easy to eat meal that’s ready to go! Plus they aren’t too messy for kids to eat! 

Sometimes, when we are at home, my kids like to dip them in warm tomato sauce or cheese sauce. And I personally, love them in a salad! (see below)

They are also a fun, easy, healthy, snack for toddlers! When they are hungry just hand them a ball from the fridge! My one year old calls them ”Happy Balls”! And they do make him happy!  😉

Tuna Ball Recipe:

• 6 cans of tuna (drained and crumbled with a fork)

• 3/4 cup ranch dressing or mayonnaise or sour cream  (we try all of them)

• 3 eggs 

• 1 cup bread crumbs (I use Italian ~ I used crushed corn flakes, too)

• 1 cup graded Parmesan cheese

• 1 cup of shredded Cheddar cheese

Mix all ingredients together. Make sure the large pieces of tuna are crushed and well mixed. 

Roll the mixture into 1 inch balls and place them on a greased jelly roll cooking sheet

~OR~

If you are in a hurry, you can press the mixture into a 13×9 inch greased pan,

or two 8×8 inch pans. (But the balls bake nicer and more evenly)

Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes; until the cheese is bubbling and they are getting brown.

They will be a lightly crisped on the outside and softer in the middle. The balls are better eaten warm but they are also very good cold.

This recipe will make about 100 balls (100 balls doesn’t go very far for our family of 11! We often make two batches!)

Note: I’ve kept them in the fridge for over a week with no problem.

 Tuna Ball Salad(My Favorite)

Break up 4 to 5 tuna balls into chunks and add it to a plate of lettuce.  Drizzle the lettuce and tuna ball chunks with olive oil and parmesan cheese. Sometimes I add Swiss cheese pieces! YUM! 

I hope you like them as much as we do!

Have a blessed Lent!

~JenMarie