Chicken meatballs and cornbread appetizer with BBQ sauce is a fun, flavorful twist on party food that’s perfect for game day and entertaining!

This post has been sponsored by Aidells. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Happy mid-week my friends!

Are you all getting excited for the end of the football season?

My team lost this past weekend (sniffle, sniffle), but I still love the fun and excitement of this time of year as we watch the number of teams dwindle and find out who's going to the BIG GAME!

And with that in mind, I’m so excited to share today’s chicken meatballs and cornbread appetizer recipe.

It’s not your regular game day appetizer or party food.

It has a little pizzazz. 🎉 It’s a little bit different. It’s totally flavorful and fun and it’s super easy to make. 🙌

So you can impress your guests without breaking a sweat! And you can get it all prepped and ready to go so that YOU can kick back and enjoy the football game too.

Or basketball game. Cause after football season, it’s on to March Madness season, amiright?!

Oh and then baseball… and summer cookouts and cocktail parties and, well, these are pretty much gonna be a hit at any gathering! 🎉

So you guys know I love me some meatballs, right? My cheesy chicken meatballs and my easy baked turkey meatballs are long-time favorites.

But let me tell you a little secret… even I don’t make 100% of my own meatballs. 😳

I know, I know… (hangs her head in shame).

BUT…

I do have standards and you know I love to read my ingredient labels so when I do buy store-bought meatballs, they are going to be good and they are going to be better for you.

Aidells is one of my favorite brands for prepared meats because they have such high-quality products. (They’ve been around for more than 30 years now too!) We’ve always loved their sausages and now I’m in love with these meatballs as well.

Their chicken meatballs are gluten-free and contain no nitrites, artificial ingredients or added hormones. 👍

I’ve used them for this appetizer of course, but my kiddos love meatballs, so these are great to have on hand to make a quick and easy dinner for them. They’d also be fabulous as sliders for a party!

And I’m so glad they are sold at my hometown Harris Teeter grocery store. It’s the one I grew up with and the one I go to the most. (Read: 3 times a week. 😂)

So I can pick up these Aidells meatballs and all the other fixings for our game day extravaganza!

And if you shop at Harris Teeter, you can even make your shopping lists online with the Myxx Recipes on Harris Teeter’s website.

Now, a few notes on this chicken meatballs and cornbread appetizer:

• I’ve used the Aidells Caramelized Onion meatballs here, because it’s what I found at my local store. However, they have other flavors that could work well in this recipe, or would be fun for a different meal!
• You can use a store-bought cornbread mix or make your own from scratch. And if you need this to be a gluten-free appetizer, you can find a gluten-free cornbread mix.
• Same for the BBQ sauce - make your own or pick up your favorite brand. I like to simmer the sauce down in the pan so it thickens and can be basted over the meatballs as a glaze, but you could skip this step and just put some BBQ sauce on each meatball with extra sauce on the side for serving.
• I like to offer toothpicks with these to make it easier for guests to pick up, but my friends and I pretty much dive in with our hands. We’re casual like that. 😉

So cheers to the last stretch of the football season! I hope your team wins. Because mine's already out, so sadly, we're not rooting against each other.

Still, I’ll happily share some of these yummy chicken meatballs and cornbread appetizer and we can all enjoy a delicious bite!

XO,

Kathryn

P.S. Looking for more easy appetizers? Check these out:

• Cold chili cheese dip
• Baked southwestern egg rolls
• Cheesy baked black bean dip

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Yield: 14-15 appetizer squares

Chicken meatballs and cornbread appetizer

Print

Chicken meatballs and cornbread appetizer with BBQ sauce is a fun, flavorful twist on party food that’s perfect for game day and entertaining!

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 8x8 pan of cornbread (homemade or prepared to package directions)
• 1 (12 oz.) package Aidells Caramelized Onion chicken meatballs

For the BBQ glaze (optional)

• ½ cup prepared BBQ sauce
• Squeeze of lemon juice
• Pinch of black pepper

Instructions

1. Prepare the cornbread according to package directions or use your favorite homemade recipe. Let the cornbread cool slightly then cut it into 16 squares.
2. Meanwhile, heat the Aidells meatballs in a skillet over medium heat for 8-10 minutes. Alternatively, you can warm them through in the oven at 375 for 8-12 minutes or microwave them on high for 2-3 minutes.
3. For the optional BBQ glaze: Bring BBQ sauce to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium-low heat and cook until reduced by half, about 10 minutes. Stir in lemon juice and pepper.
4. Let the glaze cool for a minute then brush the BBQ glaze onto the warmed up meatballs.
5. Place a meatball on each square of cornbread.
6. Serve with extra sauce, and toothpicks, on the side and enjoy!

Notes

You can use a store-bought cornbread mix or make your own from scratch. And if you need this to be a gluten-free appetizer, you can use a gluten-free cornbread mix.

Same for the BBQ sauce - make your own or pick up your favorite brand. I like to simmer it down in the pan so it thickens and can be basted over the meatballs as a glaze, but you could skip this step and just add some BBQ sauce to each meatball with extra for serving on the side.

I like to offer toothpicks with these to make it easier for guests to pick up, but we usually just dive in without them.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

14

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 67Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 16mgSodium: 202mgCarbohydrates: 8gFiber: 0gSugar: 4gProtein: 3g